


My Whole World

by DaNotSoGoodSamaritan



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Badass Clarke, Badass Lexa, F/F, F/M, Flashbacks, Multi, Polyamory, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Protective Clarke, Slow Burn, Survival, Time Jump, Unknown Lands, Violence, Worldbuilding
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-05
Updated: 2017-09-29
Packaged: 2018-12-23 14:05:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 26,468
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11991369
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DaNotSoGoodSamaritan/pseuds/DaNotSoGoodSamaritan
Summary: Set 10 years after Mount Weather events.Clarke is a mother of nightblood twins.She has rejected her ties to Skaikru and does not consider them her people anymore.She live happily with her husband in the Unknown lands far from the reach of the Commander & the Coalition.Or so she thought because one day a messenger come to her doorstep informing her that the lands they live in now belong to the Coalitionand that Heda has ordered the construction of a village around their home.Now Clarke has a choice to make.Run away and risk the life of her family by going even further into the Unknown lands.Or stay and face the Coalition & the rules that will inevitably come with it.This also means facing her past and the many ghosts thought long gone because she knows that Heda always care for her people and that she will inevitably come visit this village once it is built.





	1. My life

**Author's Note:**

> This is my 1st fic.
> 
> First thing: English is not my native language so you can expect mistakes.
> 
> Second thing: I'm not good at describing things so for now most of this work is about the story. I don't know how long I will keep working on this so if anyone want to use some parts of my work or whatever will be posted if I stopped writing this fic to make a better version of it, you have my permission.  
> I don't mind because what I was looking for when I started writing this fic was a story about Clarke being a mom, something happening 10 years after the season 2 ending & something about exploration and sadly there aren't many fics about this stuff.
> 
> Third thing: I'm no good with Trigedasleng, I know a few words but that's it so I will do what many others did before me, I will use italics for these conversations.
> 
> Last thing: I will post a few chapters to see what you all think about this so please tell me what's good and what's wrong with my work.

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke  
The Unknown lands

~~  ~~  ~~

" _Youki, Yova it's time to go to bed!_ "

" _Nooo...it's too early mom!_ " said the twins in unison.

" _Listen to your mother!_ " a familiar voice says.

" _Thanks my love, what would I do without you?_ "

" _Run after them and fail miserably?_ " Vik said teasing her.

"Smartass!" Clarke said looking at him. She smiled and walked toward her daughters.

" _Come now it's almost dark and you know I don't like it when you two play too close to the lake._ "

Clarke remember the large snake she encountered with Vik when they first settled here eight years ago. It was even bigger than the first one she saw a decade ago with the delinquents.  
She spent three months building a small boat with her husband pretty much for nothing and trying to kill that thing just wasn't worth the risk when there is plenty to hunt in the forest or the mountain nearby.  
She doesn't hunt around the mountain often because there are bears over there. The forest is simply enough, there is plenty to hunt even with the occasional puma around.

" _Yes mom_." Yova said with a very much exaggerated sigh.

They walk back to their home in silence. Clarke frowned slightly knowing she'll have to talk to them about it tomorrow.

Their home is a slightly elevated long hut built around few tall trees to provide enough cover so the hut can only be seen from the front.  
It's a cozy home, one bedroom for each daughters even though they always sleep together. One bedroom for her & her husband.  
One storage room to store food, furs, weapons and the likes. And the rest of the house is used for pretty much everything since there is enough space to cook, relax or play with the childrens.

" _Alright to bed now and I will tell you a story before you sleep_." Clarke said while everyone stepped inside.

Both girls dart into their parents bedroom excitedly.

" _Don't work outside too long_." Clarke murmured to her husband before he left the hut.

" _Don't worry love, I won't be long_." Vik said with a small grin on his face.

At this, Clarke move to her bedroom only to find the twins tucked into the furs.

" _Tonight I will tell you the story of Frodo Baggins_."

" _In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit_..."

Clarke told the story for a while before stopping suddenly to tell them it was time to go to sleep. The girls didn't protest knowing their mom would continue the story tomorrow.  
She kissed them goodnight and left to her own bedroom. Her husband stepped in moments later.

" _You didn't keep me waiting I see_." she said smiling

Vik moved to the bed to kiss her.

" _I love you_." he said lovingly.

" _I love you too_." she reply with a big smile on her face.

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa  
Polis

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa wake up abruptly in her bedroom in Polis. She sigh deeply. She dreamed of Clarke again like she does many nights.  
This time she dreamt of the kiss they shared so many years ago, she keep reminding herself of Titus teaching.

" _Love is weakness_." she murmured.

And this immediately remind her of what ensued not long after.

She get up and get ready for the day, one she knows will be long.  
She spend most of the day in the throne room judging crimes, meeting ambassadors and most importantly waiting for a messenger she sent over a month ago in the Unknown lands.

Last year, the coalition decided to start exploring the Unknown lands and sent scouts to find lands where villages could be built.  
She was confident that the scouts would be successful so she had ordered the clans to prepare what would be necessary to build these villages as soon as the scouts would return.

Two months ago the scouts reported 8 suitable lands.  
However among these lands, it was also reported that one was already inhabited. A homestead was found there. While surprising to most, Lexa knew the lands beyond the borders of the Coalition were survivable.  
So it was debated during many days that whether or not whoever lived there could decide if the village was going to be built or not.  
It was finally decided that they could either welcome the coalition or be forced to move.  
These villages will be the first step to further explore the Unknown lands and the coalition will need all the support they can get to accomplish this goal.

Lexa supported the decision, she knew forcing a family to move could be a dangerous move if they belonged to an unknown clan but the expansion was simply too important and she was willing to risk it.  
Still she hoped the people who lived there would welcome them and if they did, she would personally thank them for their hospitality.  
She also knew that welcoming people and accepting rules were two different things but she was confident that she would convince them anyway.

So a little more than a month ago, a messenger was sent to this home to inform the family that a village would soon be built around their home and that if they did not allowed it, they would be forced to leave.  
After the messenger left, Lexa ordered to the other caravans to begin their journey to the Unknown lands.  
The journey from Polis to the family take almost 3 weeks so the return of the messenger was now a matter of days.

Moments later, Titus enter the throne room announcing the messenger's return.

" _She may enter_." she said confidently.

Two guards open the doors allowing the messenger inside.  
She walk confidently toward her, stopped in the middle of the room and bowed.

" _Do you have an answer for me Lydia?_ "

" _Yes Heda_." Lydia said nervously, the commander's presence obviously intimidating her.

Lexa raise an eyebrow as to say 'Well?'.

" _The family welcome the Coalition on their lands however, they will not accept our laws_." Lydia said knowing the news would not be taken well.

Lexa sigh inaudibly.

" _When the caravan begin it's journey to their lands, you will accompany them and you will inform the family that they will be exempted of our rules until the village is built and I come to visit it. I will then explain to them that our laws exist for a reason and that they are to be expected to follow them_."

" _Yes Heda_."

Lexa notice the slight tense on the messenger's body.

" _How did the family react to your presence?_ " Lexa said knowing there was more to hear.

" _As I neared their home I heard a woman screaming, moments later two childrens came running inside the hut while the woman had a bow pointed at me. A man came outside moments after with sword in hand_."

Lexa noticed the messenger swallow slightly, no doubt recalling the event.

" _The woman asked me to stop moving and then asked who I was and what I was doing here, I gave them my name and then explained that I represented the Coalition_."

" _The woman seemed surprised to hear this. The man explained shortly after that he was an Ingranrona warrior_."

Lexa was surprised by this, to hear that some among the Coalition successfully explored and settled beyond their borders was definitely something of note.  
But it also made this family's decision to reject the Coalition's laws surprising to say the least. That picked her curiosity because if this family welcomed the Coalition but refused to follow their laws then it probably meant they had left their clan for a reason. She put that thought aside for now and continued to listen to Lydia.

" _The woman didn't say if she came from the same clan and instead asked again why I was here_."

" _I gave them the message and saw the woman tense immediately after_."

Lexa understood then that it was probably the woman who was behind the family's decision regarding their laws.  
This woman does not wish to follow the laws of the Coalition but it is more likely that she refuse to follow only a few of these laws rather than all of them.  
If she can convince the woman to tell her which laws then she would find a way to solve this peacefully.

" _The man asked me to wait for a day until they took a decision. The next day, the woman gave me their answer and after this I left_." Lydia finished.

" _Anything of note?_ " Lexa asked.

" _The man asked me about the 13th clan. I told him about the war with Azgeda and how Skaikru helped the Coalition_." she stopped briefly before continuing.

" _The woman was hostile toward me even after her childrens were out of danger. However, the man was only hostile at first. The woman did not seem to take the news very well and would have rejected the Coalition's offer immediately if her husband did not force her to reconsider_."

Lexa thought about it briefly. Whatever that woman did, the man was able to convince her to allow the Coalition on their lands.  
She could either negotiate with them and hope their demands would be reasonable or she could be blunt and ask directly why they left their clans.  
Either way she will not allow them to stay in the village if they are not willing to follow any of her laws.

" _Do you think the woman will fight if we were to force them out of their lands?_ " Lexa asked even though she already knew the answer.

" _She will and the man will too if it comes to that_."

Lexa knew it was a possibility so she decided that when she go that village, she will go with more warriors than usual as a show of force.

" _Thank you Lydia, you may leave_." Lexa said ending the conversation.

" _Yes Heda_."

She watched Lydia leaving the throne room and was soon already lost in her thoughts.

Titus spoke then.

" _Heda, surely you will not allow these people to live in one of our villages without following our laws?_ "

" _These are their lands Titus and they were here before us. I intend to negotiate with these people for they have something we don't._ " Lexa said confusing Titus.

" _What could they pos-_ " Titus started but Lexa cut him before he could continue.

" _If they live there with childrens, it means they explored these lands many years ago. They certaintly did not explored the Unknown lands with childrens in their arms_."

Titus was about to reply but Lexa raised her hand dismissing him. After he left, she remained on her throne for a long moment lost in her thoughts.  
She then went to train with the nightbloods for the rest of the day.

 

* * *

 

" _I do not think I can teach you more than you already know Aden_." Lexa said proud of how much he learned all these years.

" _One can always learn more_." Aden said

" _And yet you know enough to teach the other nightbloods as well as I do. Why did you choose to stay when all the older nightbloods left?_ " Lexa asked.

During the many years of peace that followed the war with Azgeda, Lexa had decided that the nightbloods fighting in the conclave would not have to fight to the death anymore.  
Not long after, she decided that when a nightblood reached twenty summers, he would be allowed to leave and do as he pleased until a new commander was needed.  
The law about the nightbloods being taken from their parents is one she did not change however.  
While she did not like the idea of taking children from their parents, she believed that it was necessary for the children to understand that their actions as Heda would always be for the people and never for their own interest.

" _Because I want the other nightbloods to have someone they can consider as their mentor, someone that will always be here to help them should they ever need it._ " he said proudly.

" _Like Titus?_ " She said with a growing smile on her face.

" _I hope not, I for one do no believe that love is weakness_." Aden said

Lexa didn't show it but she was pleased hear him say this, to her it meant that her people was already starting to think differently and that maybe one day they would get past the old ways.

" _It is easy to believe this when you never had to suffer the loss of loved ones but you also have to remember that when you lead your people, your people may not always be happy with how you lead and while some will show it to you directly, others will not_." Lexa said remembering Costia.

" _Titus told me about Costia. Nia is dead. You are the one who took her head and we are at peace now, we have been for nine years. Will you really spend the rest of your life alone?_ " Aden asked.

" _There was only one person after Costia for whom I would've tried_."

" _What happened?_ " Aden asked surprised.

" _I betrayed her. To be Heda is t-_ " Lexa started to say but Aden finished.

" _Is to be alone. I know_..." Aden sighed.

" _But I think I would try anyway, love is too important to be ignored_." he said smiling.

" _You would make a great teacher. Goodnight Aden_." Lexa said ending the conversation.

" _Goodnight Heda_." Aden replied but Lexa was already leaving for the tower lost in her thoughts and did not hear him.

Lexa spent the remainder of the night thinking about the new villages, the family she would soon have to deal with and about her conversation with Aden.  
But she closed her eyes thinking about Clarke like she does so many times.


	2. The messenger

~~ ~~ ~~

Clarke  
The Unknown lands

~~ ~~ ~~

Clarke look at her daughters practicing their bow skills in the clearing near the lake.  
She is pleased to see that they seem to have listened to what Vik & her told them earlier about the snake that lived in the lake.  
It's amazing to see how fast they learned to use the bow & the knives in barely a year.  
She always stopped Vik from teaching them about this stuff but changed her mind the day she saw a wolf where the twins often go to play.  
Luckily it was only one wolf and she hunted it down after she had asked her husband to stay inside with the girls.  
But since that day, she told Vik that they would both teach them how to fight and hunt.

Clarke is making a few traps for Vik when he goes hunting tomorrow.

Vik come out of the hut then to look at his daughters.

" _Do you have enough arrows for tomorrow?_ " Clarke asked

" _I do_." he said looking pensive. " _But we will soon need to make new poison darts for the blowpipe_."

Clarke learned about this method in a book. While it is very efficient, Vik & her agreed to only use these darts when it was absolutely necessary.  
There is no honor in killing an animal in such a way.

" _I will make them after you're back_."

" _I'll go prepare the food I will need_." he said going back in the hut.

Clarke kept working on the traps for about an hour when she saw someone on a horse coming toward her.

She got up immediately and screamed to the twins.

" _Youki, Yova GO HOME NOW!_ "

The twins dropped their bows and ran quickly toward her.

" _Vik go take your sword and wait for the girls to get inside!_ " Clarke said loud enough for her husband to hear.

Clarke then grabbed her bow and pointed it toward the figure still coming to her.  
She now see that the figure is a tall woman with war paint on her face and a tribal tatoo on her neck, long dark hair and clothes that designated her as a Trikru. She look young even with the paint.  
She sigh when she realise that she surely is a scout.  
Youki & Yova run past her and go inside the hut.

Vik came outside shortly after.

" _That's close enough!_ " she said loud enough for the woman to hear.

The woman stopped moving waiting for Clarke to continue.  
She doesn't seem to be a threat but she can't be sure so she keep her bow pointed at her.

" _Who are you and what are you doing here?_ " she asked with a menacing tone.

The woman got off the horse and took a few steps toward Clarke before stopping.

" _I am Lydia kom Trikru and I represent a coalition of thirteen clans east of here_."

Clarke didn't expect this and she was sure that woman saw the surprise on her face.  
Vik must have seen it too as he introduced himself.

" _I am Vik kom Ingranrona, I was a warrior among my clan and_ -"

" _What are you doing here?_ " Clarke asked again, her tone getting darker.

" _I have a message from the Coalition_." Lydia said carefully now sensing how the woman in front was loosing her patience.

" _All thirteen clans among the Coalition had decided a year ago to explore the Unknown lands. Heda sent scouts to do so shortly after. The scouts have found eight suitable lands where villages could be built and one of these lands is yours_."

" _The Coalition took the decision to build a village around your home. You can either welcome the Coalition or leave_." Lydia finished.

Clarke knew what this meant. The Coalition will build this village no matter what and they would not hesitate to force her family to move.  
She gave a quick look at Vik, turned back to the messenger and gave her answer without any hesitation.

" _You can tell the Coalition they will take my house over my dea_ -"

" _Please, give us time to make our decision. We will give you an answer tomorrow_." Vik said cutting her off. " _You can stay here until then. I will come with food and make a fire_."

Clarke look at him with a frown but said nothing, instead she grit her teeth and storm off inside. Vik sighed knowing what would happen as soon as he'd step inside.

" _Make yourself comfortable while I prepare the fire_." he said.

Lydia nodded and went to her horse. She prepared the tent for the night and watched as Vik finished the fire.

 _"I take it she does not like the Coalition all that much_." Lydia said.

" _She and the Coalition just have history that is all_." Vik said keeping it vague on purpose. " _Do not worry, I will be able to convince her_." he said with a small smile.

" _Did you left your clan for her?_ " she asked.

" _She left because she wanted to be free from her past. I left my clan because I love her and I would follow her anywhere she goes_."

" _Going into Unknown lands just the two of you? That was a bold move_." she said with a hint of admiration.

" _Who said it was just the two of us?_ "

" _If you two explored these lands with two childs then I take back what I said, that was a stupid move_." she said knowing it what not what happened. " _But I do not believe you two are fools_."

" _She gave birth to our daughters six months after we found these lands. She was already with child when we left the Ingranrona borders. We were fortunate to have found this place when we did_."

" _You did not know she was with child when you left didn't you?_ " she asked guessing he would never have left if that was the case.

" _She told me eventually_." he said bitterly. " _I will go get your food_."

Lydia watched as Vik stepped into the hut.

 

* * *

 

Clarke stepped out of Yova's room where she spent the last minutes reassuring her daughters when she heard her husband get inside and move toward the storage room.

" _So?_ " she said harshly.

" _We will talk after I bring her food Clarke_." he said sighing deeply.

" _You know why I don't want them here. Do you seriously expect me t_ -" Clarke started before being cut.

" _In a moment_." he said firmly frowning a little.

Clarke just groaned and watched as he left.

 

* * *

 

Vik walked toward Lydia's tent with the food.

" _May I ask you something?_ " he said.

" _Of course_."

" _You talked about the Coalition and a thirteenth clan. How Skaikru was accepted in the Coalition?_ " he asked.

" _To make it quick, Skaikru being the thirteenth clan was not accepted at first. After the fall of the mountain, Azgeda only grew bolder and it wasn't long before queen Nia declared war upon the Coalition. This war only lasted two months thanks to Skaikru warriors and their tek. Heda killed the queen and Prince Roan became the king. Skaikru helped the Coalition in many ways after this. They helped enough to gain the respect of the clans over the years, enough to be trusted among the caravans that came here_." she finished.

" _Thank you for telling me this Lydia kom Trikru. Goodnight_."

" _Goodnight Vik kom Ingranrona_." she said watching as he walked back toward the hut.

 

* * *

 

Clarke is already in bed when her husband come to the bedroom.

" _Do you still want to talk?_ " he asked.

She say nothing.

" _I do not wish to run away my love_." he said quietly.

" _You know what will happen if we stay and you know I don't want to leave so we don't have that many options. I will not let anyone take them away from me_." she said firmly.

" _I talked a little about the Coalition with the messenger and I believe we might be able to negotiate with them_."

" _How?_ " she scoffed. " _Go ahead, tell me how because I really don't think the Coalition will let us keep our daughters once they know they are nightbloods_."

" _Skaikru is in the Coalition now and the Coalition has been at peace for at least nine years. She told me the clans respect Skaikru so if the clans accepted them, we could find a way to make them accept a few rules of our own. These our our lands after all_."

" _And what would happen if they refused? No, I will not gamble with the life of our daughters and you should be ashamed to even consider it_." she said harshly and sighed. " _They can build their village if they want to but I will not accept any of their laws and if they do not accept this then I will fight if I have to_." she finished.

Vik sighed knowing he would not change her mind about this.

" _So be it, we will give our answer at first light_." he said resigned. " _Goodnight my love_."

" _Goodnight_." she said facing the wall.

 

* * *

 

Clarke wake up feeling strong arms wrapped around her. She smile turning around to kiss her husband and her smile falter a bit as she recall the past day's events.  
She get up and go prepare some food before waking up her daughters.

She stepped into Yova's room, kiss the twins on the head and gently shake them awake.

" _Wake up my little nightbloods_." she said quietly.

" _Hey mom_." the twins said in unison.

" _Food will be ready when you're up_."

" _Thanks mom_." the twins said as Clarke left the room.

" _Good morning my love_." Vik said lovingly.

" _Good morning_." she said with a small smile. " _Come on, we will give our answer to the messenger_."

Vik nodded and followed Clarke outside.

 

* * *

 

As they step outside, Clarke notice Lydia is awake and already packed & ready to go.

" _Good morning Lydia kom Trikru_." Vik said with a smile.

" _Good morning Vik kom Ingranrona_." Lydia said with an equal smile. " _Good morning_..." she start letting the words hang purposefully.

" _Good morning_." Clarke said harshly not willing to give her name knowing the messenger would recognize it.

" _Do you have an answer for me?_ " Lydia asked looking at Clarke.

" _We do_." she said firmly. " _We will welcome the Coalition on our lands but we will not follow their laws. This is the only thing we ask_." Clarke finished.

" _Very well_." Lydia said. " _I thank you for your hospitality. The Coalition's caravan should reach your lands in about a month. Goodbye Vik_." she said pausing a moment. " _And goodbye to you too_." she finished looking at Clarke.

" _Goodbye Lydia_." Vik said.

Clarke said nothing and looked at the messenger as she slowly left. Her husband looked at her for a moment and sighed.

" _I truly hope you have made the right decision my love_." he said.

" _There is no other way. I'm done running away_." she said finally before she turned back to move toward the hut.


	3. The long road

~~ ~~ ~~

Bellamy  
Plains Riders territory

~~ ~~ ~~

Bellamy check the caravan one last time to make sure everything is where it should be.  
It's a big caravan, there are six carts. One is loaded with food and water, another with furs and tents. Three are packed with tools and various materials.  
And the last one is used to carry people.  
There are thirty-two horses, twelve are used for the carts. There are fifty people in this caravan. All are volunteers who wants to be among the first to explore these new lands.

Bellamy walk to the front of the caravan toward Echo.

"You ready for this?" he asked with a big smile on his face.

"I am always ready Bellamy." Echo said looking him up and down. "You seem excited."

"Aren't you?" he asked with a hint of disappointment. "Not even a little?"

"We have a long road ahead of us. I will be excited when we reach our destination." she said with a little smile.

"Well I am excited about this." he said looking at her with a smug face. "I'm sure I'll find a way to make it fun."

Echo left out a little chuckle before moving to the back of the caravan.  
Bellamy get on his horse and turn toward the caravan.

" _Today we start our journey to the Unknown lands. You know why we go there, you know how important this. We will show to the Coalition that they were right to trust us with this mission and when Heda come to the new territory, our village will be the first she visit. Now let's move_." he said loud enough for the whole caravan to hear.

Bellamy then moved to lead the caravan toward the road they will follow for the next two weeks.

 

* * *

 

The caravan stopped at nightfall near a river to set up camp.  
Bellamy ordered four warriors to stand watch until they leave at first light. They would rest in the cart during the next day.

Bellamy walk to the fire where one of the warrior stand watch.

"You're the one they sent to the people who lives in the Unknown?" he asked to the scout as he sat beside her.

Lydia nodded but said nothing.

"Are they dangerous?" he asked quietly.

"They are." she said with a sigh.

"Will they try to kill us though?" he muttered to himself.

"We will know soon enough. Heda has an answer for them, we will see how they react then."

"What are they like?"

"They are like us." she said chuckling a little.

"Even after all these years, you people still manage to surprise me." he said laughing quietly.

"It is just a family that wanted to live far from us." she said sighing. "It is a family of four, the father was a Plains Riders warrior. The mother...I don't know much about her, she was very suspicious of me and didn't talk much. And there are two childrens, two girls that seemed young. I only saw them briefly so that's all I know about them."

"A warrior..." he muttered to himself again.

"Between you and me, the woman was more frightening than the man." she said smiling "He was friendly toward me. He offered food, made a fire and even asked about your people."

"What do you mean?" Bellamy said confused a little.

"Well if he asked that then he left his clan before Skaikru became the thirteenth clan so..."

"It must have been quite the surprise then." he said with a small chuckle.

"I do not know, if it was then he did not show it. He left to take the food right after." she said

"Do you know why they left?" he asked.

"Like I said I do not know much about the woman, but the man told me that they left so she could be free of her past but I'm guessing it was something bad if she left while she was with child."

"They explored these lands while she was pregnant?" he said giving her a disbelieving look.

"The man did not know it then but yes it is what happened." she said with a small sigh.

"And him why did he left his clan?"

"He left for her." she said like it was obvious.

"No better reason to leave." he said smiling. Lydia nodded.

"I'm gonna go sleep a little, we have a long day tomorrow." he said getting up.

"Goodnight Bellamy kom Skaikru." she said quietly.

Bellamy nodded and left toward his tent.

 

* * *

 

The caravan kept moving at same pace for the next six days before they had to stop to replenish their food supply.  
They made camp near a collapsed building and Bellamy ordered their hunters to work in pairs and sent three groups away while Echo and himself would go west.

"Will you ever learn how to remain silent while you run?" Echo said with a hint of amusement.

"I'm not making that much noise." he said narrowing his eyes.

"Stop talking, you'll scare the beasts." she murmured with a smile.

"May I remind you that you are the one who started this conversation?" he said pointing out the obvious.

As they reach a hill, they see a dozen of wild horses down a clearing. They both sit a moment to look at them.

"You see the white one and the big black one?" Echo said.

"Yeah they're beautiful." he said admiring the wild beasts.

"A mare & a stallion." she said looking at him. "We should tame them."

"Don't you remember what happened the last time we tried something like that?" he said recalling something he wish he could forget.

"How could I forget this, it is one of my most cherished memories." she said laughing. "What did you expect though, you ran at this poor horse screaming like a crazed goat!"

Bellamy groaned putting his head in his hands.

"This time we will approach them slowly to show them we are not going to harm them. Then we will feed them." she said. "Let's find some fruits first."

They both get up spending a few moments looking for fruits and nuts then they went to the clearing.

"Alright let's do this." Bellamy said bracing himself.

"Relax, they will run if they feel that you're not comfortable."

They spend an hour trying approach the horses. When the horses are comfortable enough to let them approach, they spend a moment feeding the mare and the stallion.  
Echo tell Bellamy to help her to get on the mare. To their surprise the mare doesn't protest so Bellamy proceed to get on the stallion only to find himself sitting on his ass moments later.

"I knew it." he said groaning.

Echo approach and look at him with a grin.

"Let's try again. I'll distract him this time."

Echo approach the stallion with the mare and help Bellamy to get on him. He succeed but the stallion suddenly rush forward and Bellamy found himself yet again on his back groaning in pain.  
They tried this three more times before Bellamy successfully remained on the horse.  
Bellamy groaned at each step the horse took as they rode back to the camp.  
When they reached the camp, everyone but the warriors standing watch were asleep. They both tied their horses to a post and moved toward their tent.

"I think we should offer them to the family." Bellamy said.

"After all you just went through, you don't want to keep them?" Echo asked surprised.

"I do but I think it might help the Coalition's relations with this family. If what I was told is true then a gift like this might actually be helpful."

"A gesture of goodwill." she said quietly and then halted to look at him. "But you still end up without reward."

" _You are my reward_." he said as he moved to kiss her.

She smiled but said nothing, instead she took his hand and led him into the tent.

 

* * *

 

The caravan kept moving for the next five days without any particular events when they reached the remnants of a large old world city.  
The caravan will surely have to move slowly through the many debris that will most likely be splattered everywhere.

Bellamy stopped the caravan close to the city and turned toward the scouts.

"Go find us a place for the night." he ordered and watched as the scouts entered the city.

He looked at something metallic half buried in the ground.

"Den." he muttered to himself.

The caravan wait for an hour before the scouts come back. They found two places to set up camp. Both will be used as they go through the city.  
Bellamy order the caravan to enter the city. They move slowly and have to stop many times to clear a path for the carts but they eventually reach the first camp site by nightfall.

They spend the next day making their way to the second camp site and when they reach it, they see they are almost out of the city.

 

* * *

 

It is almost dark and everyone is getting ready to sleep.  
Bellamy enter his tent and find Echo making the bed.

"Hey." he said quietly. "Do you want to take a look around?"

Echo nod and kiss him before leaving the tent.

They walk through the city for an hour before they stumble across a building in a better shape than most.

"Come on let's take a look." he said grabbing her hand.

Echo groaned but followed him inside.

"You didn't say anything about scavenging." she said sighing.

"Aren't you even a little bit curious?" he asked stepping inside a large room.

Bellamy take out his torchlight and start searching.  
He stopped in his tracks as he had a hard time believing what he saw.  
In front of him, hundreds of books were scattered across the large room.

"Now that's what I call a reward." he said loudly.

Echo punch his arm.

"I thought I was your reward." she said frowning.

"Sorry." he said as he touched her arm.

They start to look at the books that still are in good shape.

"Carpentry, Electronics, Mechanics and so on." he said looking excited. "I know someone who'll be happy with all that. This place is a gold mine."

"That is too much though, we will have to come back to take the rest." she said. "But we can take a few with us at least."

"I want to find something first. Take these books outside and wait for me, I won't be long." he said already looking around.

"Be quick, I will not wait forever." she said smiling.

Bellamy spend a few minutes looking at the books before he find what he's looking for.  
He step outside with the books in his hands.  
Echo take a look at them and look at him confused.

"The jungle book, Alice's adventures in Wonderland, 101 Dalmatians?" she asked.

"These are stories for childrens." he replied "Lydia told me the family who lives where we will build the village have two young girls so if the parents know how to read, that will make great gifts."

Echo look at him smiling.

"You are a kind man Bellamy kom Skaikru" she said as she kissed him.

"Come on let's go back to camp." he said with a grin on his face as they leave the library.

"So..." she said. "Who's Lydia?"

 

* * *

 

The caravan leave the city early in the morning and start moving south. According to Lydia, they should reach their destination in two days.  
They have to stop to hunt during the afternoon. The next day, they finally reach Clarke's lands and as the caravan get close to the family's home, Bellamy see Lydia coming toward him.

"When we are close enough to the family's hut, you will stop the caravan. I have to deliver the message to the family and I do not know how they will react so it is better if I go alone." she said.

"Sixteen days ago we left Kans to come here. There was fifty of us in this caravan, now we're here." Bellamy said proudly "We reached our destination, no one died during this journey and I intend to keep it that way."

"Why risk two lifes instead of one?" she stated. "They know me and even if they decide to fight, I do not think they will kill me for delivering this message. If they decide to fight and I'm not alone, this might end up differently."

"Are you sure about this?" he asked.

"I do not think they will kill me. The woman could but I doubt the man will let her." she said. "So yes I am sure."

"Alright well I hope you're right." he said.

"So do I." she muttered to herself.

The caravan move for an hour when Lydia spot some familiar trees in the distance.  
They're here.


	4. Past present

~~ ~~ ~~

Clarke  
The Unknown lands

~~ ~~ ~~

When the messenger left, Clarke spent the month training and teaching her daughters how to survive in the wild.  
She didn't know if the Coalition would agree with their demands so she prepared for the worst.  
She trained every day with her swords, knives and bow. Twice a week, she practiced her shooting skills with a rifle she'd found a few years ago inside a bunker in the mountain nearby.  
She barely used it but she always kept it under her bed ever since a wolf came too close to their home one day.

Clarke spent the morning practicing with the twins as she did for the past month.

" _If both of you don't miss your targets, I'll let you play for the rest of the day_." Clarke said.

" _I never miss my targets_." Youki said proudly.

" _But you suck with the knives!_ " Yova reply quickly after.

" _Language!_ " Clarke said frowning.

" _Sorry_." Yova said.

" _Go on Youki_." Clarke said.

Youki release her arrow and hit the dummy right in the head.

" _Good. Keep going_."

She release her arrows and hit the other two dummies in the head.

" _Told you_." Youki said to her sister. " _Now let's see how you do it_."

Clarke say nothing and looked as Yova took the bow.  
She release an arrow that hit the dummy in the neck. She look at Youki with a big grin on her face.

" _You got lucky!_ " Youki said gritting her teeth.

Yova continue and hit the other two dummies in the neck each time.

" _No I'm not_." she said smiling again.

Clarke smile before taking the bow from Youki's hands.

"Alright, you can go play now." She said proud of her daughters skills. " _But I want you both back home at noon to eat_."

" _Yes mom_." the twins said in unison.

Clarke watch as they both run toward the clearing. She grab the bow and move back to the hut.

 

* * *

 

Clarke spent the remainder of the morning making arrowheads from some bones.  
It's almost noon when she spot a rider in the distance.

" _Vik!_ " she said loud enough for him to hear.

" _What is it?_ " he said from inside the hut.

" _She's back!_ " she said grabbing her bow.

Vik come outside moments after. He watch as the rider get closer. He look at his wife and see her hand pressed tightly around her bow.

" _You do not need this bow Clarke_." he said hoping she would relax a little.

" _We'll see about that_." she said quietly.

" _She is alone, that is a good sign_." he point out. " _If the Coalition refused our proposition, they would have sent warriors_."

'Good point' she thinks. But she's still not going to let go of the bow.  
So she said nothing and instead waited for Lydia to reach them.

The messenger stop in front of them and nod.

" _Hello again Vik kom Ingranrona_." she said before looking at Clarke. " _And hello to you too_."

" _Hello Lydia kom Trikru_." Vik said.

" _Do you have an answer for us?_ " Clarke asked impatiently.

" _The Coalition will exempt you of rules until the village is built and Heda come to visit it. She wishes to explain you why these laws exist and why she expect you to follow them_." Lydia said looking at Clarke to see her reaction.

"I fucking knew it!" Clarke said looking at her disbelievingly.

Vik then grabbed her arm and looked at Lydia. " _Give us a moment_."

He led Clarke a little further so Lydia wouldn't hear them.

"I knew it, I fucking knew they would never accept this!" Clarke said starting to panick a little.

"We have time Clarke. By the time they build the village and Heda come here, at least two months will pass." he said.

"So what? We keep our daughters for two months then we let them take them away from us?" she said getting angry.

"You heard what she said, Heda is coming here. We can negotiate with her."

"Or she'll just come with more warriors and kill us!" she spat.

"If that were the case, she would have just sent warriors with the caravan to kill us when they arrived." he said.

"I will not let them take our daughters!"

"Clarke, they do not know our daughters are nightbloods for now." he said. "We stay and we allow them to build the village. When Heda comes, we will negotiate with her and if we fail then we will run away."

"We stay." Clarke said firmly. "And we will negotiate but if we fail the negotiations, I will not run away." she finished making sure he understood what it meant.

Vik nodded and they walked back toward Lydia.

Clarke stop inches from Lydia's face frowning. " _You can stay_." she said trying to contain her anger and then moved toward the hut.

" _I am sorry, she is afraid of certain laws and she did not take this well. I give you my word that your caravan is not in danger here_." Vik said and Lydia nodded.

Vik notice the twins coming toward them.

" _Dad, we saw a dog in the forest!_ " Youki said excited.

" _Come here girls and say hello_." he told them.

" _Hello_." they said in unison.

" _Hello, I am Lydia kom Trikru_."

" _I am Youki and this is Yova_." Youki said pointing to herself and then to Yova. " _Dad we have to eat, mom will be angry if we're late_."

" _Go ahead and tell your mother I will eat later_. _I have to go welcome the caravan_." he said to his daughters.

He watched the twins get in the hut and then turned to look at Lydia.

" _They are as beautiful as their mother_." she said smiling.

" _Yes, they certaintly are_." he said with an equal smile. " _Now, lead me to the caravan so I can welcome them properly_." Lydia nodded and led Vik toward the caravan.

~~ ~~ ~~

Bellamy  
The Unknown lands

~~ ~~ ~~

Bellamy is getting worried as Lydia's return is taking too long for his taste. She left more than half an hour ago it is far more than enough to deliver a message.  
He was about to send someone to find her when he saw her moving toward the caravan with a man.

A few moments later Lydia and a man reach the caravan. Bellamy take a moment to look at him.  
He is a six foot tall man, long dark hair and a long beard. A small scar near his jaw, probably longer but hidden by his beard. He is probably in his mid-thirties.  
He seems well built too, definitely a warrior.

The man move a little closer and take a look at the caravan.

" _I am Vik kom Ingranrona and I welcome you all on my lands. I will lead you to my home where you can settle and I will also help you build your village_." he said loud enough for all to hear.

Bellamy take a step toward him.

" _I am Bellamy kom Skaikru and I thank you for your hospitality_." Bellamy said with a warm smile and noticed a hint of surprise in the man's eyes. " _Please, show us the way_."

Vik nodded and turned back to lead the caravan toward his home.

" _Tell me Vik, how long have you lived here?_ " Bellamy asked.

"My wife and I have spent nine summers on these lands." he said. "My daughters have spent eight summers here."

"Why come here?"

"To find peace." he said simply.

'Smart answer' Bellamy thought, he doesn't tell why he left but doesn't lie either.

"Why did you, Bellamy kom Skaikru?" he asked.

"I don't know, exploring new lands looked like fun when they asked for volunteers." he said jokingly and hear a chuckle coming from the man.

"No, I came because they needed someone to lead this caravan. I think I'm quite good at keeping people alive." he said humbly.

"Is that so?" Vik asked a little suspicious.

"Well for one, we didn't lose anybody on our way here." he stated. "That and my actions during the war with Azgeda was one of the few reasons I was asked to lead this caravan."

"Lydia told me about the war, she told me of Skaikru's help." Vik said and Bellamy nodded.

"Yeah, we did help the Commander to reach Nia but we only did it because we knew that the longer the war went on, the longer our people would suffer." he said remembering the people he killed during this war.

"You did what you had to do in order to survive, there is no shame in that."

Bellamy hear someone approaching from behind, he take a quick look and see Echo riding the white mare toward him.

"You're up for a race?" Echo asked with a grin.

"No thank you." Bellamy said narrowing his eyes while he looked at her.

"Come on, it happened nine days ago. Stop acting like a child." she said with a light chuckle.

"And I still feel it."

"Alright then suit yourself." she said as she rode up ahead.

"Is she yours?" Vik asked after a moment with a smile.

"How did you know?" Bellamy asked.

"How would I not?" he stated. "The way you two look at each other or the way you tease each other. It is easy to notice really."

Bellamy sighed smiling but said nothing.

"We are close." Vik said. "I have to warn you about the dangers around here. There are bears in the mountains nearby and also a Pauna so you should avoid getting there. There are a few predators in the forest too, wolves and big cats. My wife call them Puma."

Bellamy frowned slightly as he heard the last part, he know what that is but he wonder how his wife know it. He put that thought aside as the man continued.

"And do not go inside the lake, there is a big snake inside." he finished.

"A snake? My sister almost got killed by one of those things when Skaikru first came down here. Maybe we can find a way to kill it one day." Bellamy said.

"This is a very big snake, I do not know if it is even possible to kill it."

"Anything can be killed. You just need to find the right way to do it." Bellamy said as he saw a long hut in the distance.

"This is it." Vik said. "This is my home."

 

* * *

 

The caravan reach the long hut a few moments later and begin setting up camp.  
Bellamy go find Echo and the horses they will offer to the family. He quickly find her petting the mare.

"You know she's not leaving right?" he said jokingly.

"Yes but it won't be the same." she said sighing. "She won't be mine anymore."

"You can always ask Vik if you can ride her when you have to use a horse. I'm sure he won't mind."

"I know...I know." she said with a sad tone. "Come on, let's get this over with."

Bellamy nodded, grabbed the stallion's reins and followed Echo.  
It's a short walk as they find Vik helping setting up camp.

"Hey Vik!" Bellamy said stopping a few feet from him. "We have a gift for you."

Bellamy & Echo both handed over the reins of the horses to Vik.

"A stallion and a mare we found on our journey to these lands." Bellamy said.

"I hope they serve you well." Echo said with a sad smile.

"You honor me, Bellamy kom Skaikru. I accept your gifts and I hope I can find a way to give you equal gift one day." Vik said as he look at Echo. "You like this mare don't you?"

"Yes I do." she said with her hand still on the back of the beast.

"We do not have much use for horses around here so she is yours whenever you need her." he said warmly.

"Thank you Vik kom Ingranrona. I will not forget this." she said smiling and walked away to help setting up camp.

"I see you have many horses, you should use the clearing to build a pen for the horses." Vik said.

"We will. We also stumbled across a library on our way here and found many books. I was told you have kids so I took a few for your family. I can find someone to teach you or your wife how to read them if you are willing to learn." Bellamy said.

"I already know to read but thank you for the offer." he said.

Bellamy can't help but be surprised by this.

"How did you learn? When we became the thirteenth clan, we offered to teach your clans how to read. I didn't think any of you already knew how to." Bellamy said with a little frown.

"I did not know how to read, my wife taught me." he stated, Bellamy looked at him confused. "If you want to know how she learned, you will have to ask her yourself."

Bellamy nod and is about to say something when two kids come running toward Vik and him.  
The first thing he notice is that the kids are identical, they are twins. Both have blonde long braided hair and shiny blue eyes.  
They look really excited to see the caravan.

" _Dad!_ " the twins said in unison. " _Mom said we could go see everyone and play with the horses if you said yes. Can we go?_ " Yova said with a big smile on her face.

" _You can but be careful around the horses_." he said trying to pull a serious face.

" _Thanks dad!_ " the twins said in unison.

" _But before you go, I want you two to meet someone_." Vik said turning their attention toward Bellamy.

" _Hey. I am Bellamy kom Skaikru, nice to meet you both_." he said with a smile crouching in front of the twins.

"I am Yova." Yova started pointing to herself. "And this is Youki." she finished pointing to her sister.

"I see you speak Gonasleng." Bellamy said surprised.

"I do too." Youki said grinning. "Mom taught us."

"I see you are both full of surprises." Bellamy said smiling. "Your mom taught you well."

"She teach us how to hunt and fight too. We can show you if you want." Yova said excitingly.

"I would love to see that but for now I still have to set up camp." Bellamy said. "But I think I can do that tomorrow if that's okay with you."

"Of course it is." Yova said smiling.

"We will see you tomorrow then. Goodbye." Youki said taking Yova's hand and leading her toward the carts.

"They speak well." Bellamy said.

"As you said, their mother taught them well." Vik said with a smile.

"Speaking of which, I still haven't seen her. Is she afraid of us?" he asked.

"I do not know, I will go ask her in a moment." Vik said as he moved toward Lydia.

Bellamy sigh and moved to set up his tent for the night.  
Tomorrow, they will start building this village.


	5. Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke  
The Unknown lands

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke is in the storage room checking the arrows to see which ones need to be replaced when she hear Vik calling her.

" _Clarke!_ "

" _In here_." she said.

" _Why are you still inside? The caravan is here_." he asked.

" _I know, I can hear them_."

" _You cannot hide anymore Clarke, even if we run away again they will catch up eventually_." he said tying to guess what she was thinking.

She put the arrows back on the shelf and turn to look at him.

" _I know. I knew this day would come, I just thought it would get easier after all this time that's all_." she said sighing.

" _The man who led the caravan here, he is someone you know, a Skaikru. One of those who helped you bring down the mountain_."

" _Did he tell you his name?_ " she asked looking pensive.

" _Bellamy_."

Clarke's reaction was obvious, she tensed up and her breathing was uneven.

" _Oh_." she murmured. " _Alright_."

She leave the storage room and go to their bedroom. Vik follow closely behind her.  
She sit on the bed with Vik, put her head on his shoulder and hold his hand.

" _I should've know he'd be too stuborn to die_." she said smirking but sighed right after. "What the fuck am I gonna tell him?" she muttered to herself.

" _He met our daughters earlier, they talked to him in Gonasleng and he was impressed by how well they talked."_ he said _. "He brought us gifts, a stallion and a mare. Books for the children too, he proposed to teach us how to read so I told him that you taught me_."

Clarke nodded but remained silent.

" _If he doesn't know who you are yet, he will figure it out quickly. Maybe not you you but he will definitely know you are Skaikru_." he stated.

" _I'm not Skaikru anymore_." she said quietly and then took a deep breath. " _I'll come say hello. Just not now, I'm not ready_."

" _I understand_." he said sighing. " _I will tell him you do not wish to talk to him for now_."

Clarke look into his eyes and kissed him.

" _Thanks_."

Vik get up moments later and left the bedroom to go help setting up camp again and talk with Bellamy.

 

* * *

 

Clarke didn't leave the house yesterday, instead she spent the rest of the day inside working on the arrowheads she started to make ealier in the morning.  
She made food for the twins and her husband but ate nothing. She spent a good part of the night decorating a bow. Sleep didn't came to her so she decided to go take a quick look at the camp because she knew almost everyone would be asleep by now. She make her way between the many tents and go toward the lake, she get on the small boat ashore and take a seat. She spend a few moments looking at the moon when she hear footsteps coming toward her.  
She sigh, look behind herself and see Lydia.

" _You do not like people all that much don't you?_ " Lydia said quietly.

" _It's not that I don't like people really_." Clarke said sighing again. " _Bad things always happen when I'm around people_."

" _What do you mean?_ " she ask looking confused.

" _People die wherever I go_." Clarke stated.

" _That is not true_." she say as she get on the boat with Clarke. " _Your family is alive_."

" _That's not what I meant_." Clarke said with a light chuckle.

" _I know_." she said. " _But bad things happen everywhere whether you are around or not_."

" _Maybe_." Clarke said. " _But I'm sure more bad things happen I am around_."

" _A lot of bad things happened during the war with Azgeda_." she stated. " _And yet you weren't around when it happened_."

" _No I was not_." Clarke said sighing deeply. " _Maybe what happened was just bad fucking luck_."

" _Was it?_ " she asked knowing Clarke wasn't talking about the war with Azgeda.

" _No_."

" _So why?_ " she asked. " _Why did they die then?_ "

" _They died so others could live_." Clarke said quietly and then murmured. " _They died because I had no more options_."

They both stay silent for a moment looking at each other.

" _You had to kill them yourself didn't you?_ " Lydia asked quietly.

" _Yeah_." Clarke said. " _It wasn't what should have happened. The plan was to kill just the soldiers and rescue our people_."

" _So what happened?_ "

" _I was betrayed_." Clarke said bitterly. " _She was given the opportunity to win without a fight and she took it. We both had people prisonners in there so when she took that opportunity, she saved her people and condemned mine_."

" _Wouldn't you have done the same?_ " she asked. " _If you had the possiblity to save your people without losing anyone doing so?_ "

" _In the heat of the moment? Probably, but after putting some thoughts in it? My people may be strong but they're not as strong as she is so if I was the one who betrayed her? My people would be long dead by now. So no, I would've followed the damn plan. People would've died that's true but my people knew how to fight against this enemy and I'm sure we would've been able to win quickly_."

" _They would have used the prisonners though_." she said.

" _Yes of course but we had allies in there too and we would've managed to get through their defenses quickly_."

" _That's wishful thinking and you know it. Plans never last in battle_." she stated, Clarke said nothing but nodded. " _Tell me, why does this hurt you so much?_ "

" _The betrayal you mean?_ " Clarke asked.

Lydia nod. Clarke shrug.

" _I loved her_." Clarke said simply.

" _You still do?_ " she asked.

" _I thought I hated her at first. I probably did actually because I couldn't think straight back then."_ Clarke said _. "But after so long? I just can't know for sure and I don't think it matters. I moved on and this part of my life is behind me_."

" _Yeah well..._ " Lydia said getting off the boat.

"... _you are wrong, it does matter because your past will always follow you_." she said with a smile. "Goodnight Wanheda."

Clarke look at her as she walk away toward the tents.

"No point in hiding anymore I guess." she muttered to herself.

She get off the boat as well and start walking back to her hut to get some sleep.

 

* * *

 

Clarke wake up alone in her bed, she stretch her arms and sigh. She know she should get up but she's thinking, thinking about what's going to happen when she leave the hut and go to see Bellamy.  
It has been more than ten years since she left Camp Jaha and she wonder if he forgave her for leaving or for all the other things she did.

She grab a fur from under the bed and take a small mirror from it. She knows her hair is a mess and her husband isn't here to help so she have to do it herself.  
She look in the mirror and see that her long mane is indeed a mess. She sigh because she know it's going to take a while so before she start, she go take a bucket of water to wash herself.  
She take off her shirt and let her hand trace the three large scars on her back.  
She recall the pain she felt when the large claw of the bear met her back and how Vik pierced the skull of the beast with his spear. It happened in a cave in the Plains Riders territory and it was only a few days after they met. That's when she first understood this man wouldn't leave her side.  
She start washing herself thinking about how long it took for these wounds to heal and about how he never left her side then. It took seven weeks for her to have been able to get off the bed and three more to start walking without feeling pain. By the time she was able to run, he already taught her how to hunt, ride and fight. All this kept her mind busy and made the ghost of the mountain a little more bearable during the day.  
She also recall being aware of how he looked at her and how much this look changed since they first met.  
She put her shirt back on, take a quick look at the tatoo on the left side of her neck and start braiding her hair.  
She remember the first time they slept together, she needed it at the time and thought he would be gone after he had what he was surely looking for. She didn't think he'd keep following her as she definitely didn't think she'd start getting sick soon after.  
And after many nights wandering in the forest doing nothing but surviving and waking up screaming, she took the decision to leave. To go far away from everyone if only to see if the ghost would finally let her go.  
So one night she told him she would be leaving the next morning and he just replied that he'd still go with her and that he didn't care where.  
The next morning, they packed whatever they brought with them the last day to hunt and just left. She didn't know she was going into the Unknown lands at first but he told her eventually and she decided to keep going no matter what.  
She put these thought aside as she finish braiding her hair.

Her stomach growl, she ate nothing since yesterday's morning because she was too anxious to eat anything. She leave the bedroom and go prepare some meat.  
She eat slowly and have a hard time swallowing but she keep going and force herself to finish. When she's done, she go check her daughters bedrooms but she find them both empty.  
She find it odd since she's always up before them so she leave the hut to go find them.

When Clarke is outside, she see a lot of people working. They all seems to have been up for quite a while so she look up at the sky only to find the sun right above her head.  
She sigh, she overslept. She look around and try to find her daughters but there are too many people around. She spot her husband, Lydia and another woman flattening the ground not far from where she stand.  
She start walking over there but stop in her tracks when two pairs of arms are wrapped around her legs.

" _Mom!_ " the twins said in unison.

" _Dad woke us up this morning, he said you needed to sleep_." Yova said. " _Are you sick?_ "

" _No I'm fine_." Clarke said crouching and taking the twins in her arms. " _Mom was just tired that's all_."

" _We practiced with the man from the sky today so you don't need to teach us_." Youki said with a hint of hope.

Clarke hear footsteps coming from behind her. she scratch her head and get up.

"So." a familiar voice said from behind her. "I finally get to meet the woman these two little angels are so fond of."

Clarke turn around and see the eyes of the man in front of her go wide and his smile die as he take a step back.  
She look at him and see he looks now much older than she last saw him. Time is definitely affecting him. His hair haven't changed much, just a little bit longer. He has a short beard now which she must admit does look good on him. He also look much stronger now.

"Hi Bell." she said simply.

Bellamy open his mouth as if he's going to say something but all he can manage is a chuckle.  
He close the distance between them and hug her tightly.

"You're still alive." he said his voice cracking a bit.

"So are you." she stated.

Bellamy break the hug and take a step back to take a look at her.

"You're looking good princess." he said smiling.

"And you're getting old." she said grinning and turned to look at the twins. "Bellamy is an old friend of mom and mom have to talk with him for a moment. Go see if dad need your help."

The twins look around and quickly find their dad, Clarke look at them leaving and then turned back to Bellamy.

"Come on, let's walk around a moment." she said walking toward the lake.

"So that's where you've been all this time." he said. "No wonder we never found you."

"Not always but yeah I've been here for a good while." she said. "I suppose you know it already but I'm gonna say it anyway. I will not come back, I left Skaikru and you're not my people anymore. This part of my life belong in the past, I moved on."

"I know Clarke and don't worry I won't ask you to." he said quietly. "But I'd like to know why you stayed though. I mean with the message they gave you, you had to know some of us would come eventually."

"Can't run away forever. The past always catch up eventually but as I said, this is all behind me. I will talk about it if I have to but that is all that will happen. My family is the only thing that matters to me so I have to be clear about it, if any of you threaten them in any way, it will end badly for you."

"For what it's worth." he said seriously. "If it ever comes to that, know that I will always help you. I was willing to back then and I still do now. You may not be my people anymore but you're still family."

"Thanks Bell." she said looking at him. "It means a lot to know that I still have friends even after all that happened."

They stay silent until they reach the lake. Clarke get on the boat and silently ask him to follow.

"Vik told you about the lake I suppose?" she asked and looked as he nodded. "So tell me. What happened after I left?"

"Well I don't know all the details and to be honest, after the war not much happened so it's gonna be quick." he said. "A few days after you left, your mom sent searching parties to find you. We never found you but we did find grounders. They were scared, I guess they thought we'd be out looking for blood or something. Anyway the grounders we met were looking for you too and we eventually learned that they were sent by the Commander to find you but I don't know why though. A few days after that, we found a few survivors from farm station, Pike, Monty's mom and a few others. Not long after that, the Ice Nation declared war on the Coalition. The Commander offered to our people to join the Coalition and become the thirteenth clan so we could be protected from Nia. The other clans were opposed to it but she forced them to accept it. We offered to help her defeat the queen and she accepted. The war lasted pretty much two months and ended with Nia being killed by the Commander. After the war, the clans started to see us differently like we gained a little bit of respect I guess.  
But it was when we started to help them that they truly started to stop seeing us as a threat. First thing we did was helping rebuild TonDC, Trikru was already grateful about the reapers we healed after the fall of the mountain but after TonDC, we basically became friends if you can believe it. After that, we offered them our medicine and this became a big thing for us over the years. The other clans send their healers to learn from us now. And the last thing we offered was to teach the clans how to read. Most were skeptical at first but after the few people we taught started to learn new skills from the books, well let's just say the clans leaders quickly understood how much they could gain from this. Polis became the place books are brought to over the years and we have people that live there now by the way. Speaking of which, two years ago we've built a village between TonDC and Arkadia where Skaikru and Trikru live together. We named it Dale. Oh yeah so Arkadia is how we renamed Camp Jaha if you haven't guessed it already. And I think that pretty much sums it up about the Coalition really. There is more to say about us of course but I don't know, I would rather let the others tell you about their life themselves." he finished.

"Uh...okay...hang on. That's kind of a lot to take in right now. Stop me if I'm wrong." Clarke said a little confused. "So...the Ice Nation go nuts on the Commander, Skaikru became the thirteenth clan, you helped crush the Ice Nation, the war is over and Skaikru & the other clans are pretty much buddies now. Did I get it all right?"

"More or less yeah."

"Okay and what do you mean by the others? Are they gonna come here too?" she asked.

"Not that I know of no. I mean Raven will that's for sure but I think that's it. Like I said, a lot has changed since you left. Skaikru gave radios to the clans and when I say Skaikru, I mean Raven. Communications were greatly improved over the years."

"Raven come here to build a radio. Okay so I guess I'll know the rest of story soon enough then." she stated. "And what about you? What did you do after all that?"

"Well it's a little sad to say but I didn't do much these past years really." he said sighing. "I became a guard. I fought alongside the Commander during the war and helped rebuild TonDC and I left Arkadia to live in Dale after it was built but after that I didn't do much because there wasn't much to do. Peace is boring for people like me." he finished with a smile.

"Why'd you leave Arkadia?"

"I decided that I couldn't spend my life doing guard duty and it took me a while to understand it. Living in Dale was the perfect way to start wondering about how I would live the rest of my life. When the Coalition made it known that they were going to send people beyond their borders, I knew what I'd be doing. I know I won't do that for the rest of my life of course but for now, I want to keep people safe."

"You always did. You know that right?" Clarke said looking at Bellamy who seemed confused. "Keeping people safe I mean. You did that ever since we came down here and unlike me you never stopped."

"I still think about the mountain sometimes you know. About all the people we killed in there."

"Don't kid yourself Bell." she said with a brief chuckle. "We may have pulled that lever together but I'm the one took that decision. I'm the one who killed these people and I accepted that. It doesn't mean I'm fine with it but it was something that needed to be done in order to save our people." she sigh. "What's done is done and now it belong in the past."

"You're right. Let's not talk about the mountain anymore." he said letting out a small breath. "You want to know what we're gonna build around here?"

"Sure." she said with a small smile.

"Alright so because these lands were already inhabited, the Coalition decided that this village was going to be the biggest." he started. "So all in all, we're going to build twenty huts, four long huts, a communal hut, a tek hut, it will be the one for the radio, two storage huts, a horse pen, Vik told us we could use the clearing but I'd like to know if you're okay with it. A healer's hut, a long one since we didn't know if the Coalition would able to send enough healers for all the villages. A hut for the hunters, one to make clothes & armors and a hut for cooking. And since this will be the largest village, we'll build an armory, a hut for the blacksmith along with another for the fisherman when we find a way to deal with the snake & the bears and we'll also build a low fence around the village when we're done with everything else. Now after all that we're going to build a signal fire on top of the mountain along with a radio tower when Raven finally get here to tell us where we have to build it. We'll build two watchtowers too since there will be no trees. We'll build a big fire in front of the communal hut too for celebrations. We were also going to build the chief's hut but I decided to delay it until the Commander come here. Speaking of which, we're going to build a hut for the Commander too since she's probably going to spend some time around here." he finished.

"That seems like an awful lot of work for just one village." she stated. "And you can use the clearing for the horses by the way." he nodded at that.

"Why here and not one of the other villages?" he asked and looked at her as she nodded. "My guess is it's because of you. If people can live here, so can they. It was the one village they'd be sure to be able to build."

"So how long do you think it will take?" she asked.

"To build the village or for Raven to come?"

"Both."

"Well there is fifty people here who all know the basics about this so I think pretty much a month. As for Raven, well it should take another month for her to come here since it take almost three weeks to do the journey from here to Polis."

"I suppose she'll come too?" she asked bitterly.

"With Raven yeah." he said. "You're still mad at her?"

Clarke tense and look away for a moment.

"I don't know." she said and stayed silent a minute. "I don't even know if I want to know. But if she's not willing to make concessions with me then it won't matter."

"What do you mean?" he asked confused.

"Can I trust you?"

"Okay I have to admit that sting a little. You have a family now and you better than anyone should know how I feel about about that." he said frowning a little.

"It was a long time ago and this is important so I ask you again. Can I trust you?" she asked seriously.

"You can trust me Clarke."

"I want to be perfectly clear Bell so if you tell this to anyone, I will kill you." she said seriously.

"You can trust me Clarke. I don't know what you did but I won't talk about it with anybody."

"It's not about what I did, it's about what the Coalition would do if they ever learned about it." she said quietly. "I have a family now and they're all that matters to me. My daughters, Youki and Yova are both nightbloods. Do you know what will happen if the Coalition get wind of this?"

"I do." he said seriously. "So what are you trying to do then? You want to negotiate with the Commander?"

"Yes and she will accept what I ask of her." she said firmly. "Because if she does, I will give her something she want."

"And what would that be?"

"I can't tell you. It's between her and me." she said anxiously.

"Alright but what if she doesn't?"

"Then I'll fight, I'll fight until I draw my last breath and a lot of people will die." she said frowning. "But if does happen and if I die, would you help them? Would you get my family away from them?"

"I'd do anything for you Clarke so yes if things get that bad and your family is in danger then I will help them." he said seriously.

Clarke reach for Bellamy and hug him tightly.

"Thanks Bell and I really hope it won't come to that." she murmured.

"So do I." he said when Clarke released him.

"Alright enough chit-chat already, we have a village to build." she said smiling.

Clarke and Bellamy get off the boat and both walk toward the camp.

 

* * *

 

Ten uneventful days passes after Clarke met Bellamy and told him about her plan. The village start to take form and a few huts are already built while a few others are well on their way. The horse pen and one of the watchtowers are also done.  
Clarke is helping a few people working on the healer's hut when she hear the twins calling for her.

" _Mom!_ " the twins said in unison.

" _Look what we've found!_ " Yova said excitedly.

" _A dog. Yes I can see that_." Clarke said calmly.

" _It's like in the book you've read us_." Youki said.

Bellamy remembered he forgot to give the books to Vik so he gave them to Clarke after they left the boat.

" _And I suppose you want to keep him?_ " Clarke asked knowingly while the twins nod frantically. " _On one condition then. I will show you how to clean him up and as I do not want him to make a mess inside our home, every time he get dirty, you will have to clean him up before he gets inside. Do you understand?_ "

" _Yes mom!_ " Yova said excitedly.

" _Thanks mom!_ " Youki said.

" _Alright go play with him now, we will clean him up before dark_." Clarke said with a smile.

The twins run off with the dog toward the horse pen as Clarke watch them with a smile.

 

* * *

 

Fourteen days later, the last hut is built and the village is finally completed.  
Bellamy announced a feast for tonight to celebrate the success of their mission. Tables and benches are brought near the communal hut for the occasion.

Clarke just left her hut when she see Lydia waiting for her outside.

" _Can we talk?_ " Lydia asked.

" _Go ahead_."

" _The village is built and I will be leaving tomorrow at first light. Do you have anything to ask of me before I go?_ "

" _Will you come back?_ "

" _Yes. When Heda make the journey here, I will go with her. Anything else?_ "

" _Don't tell her who I am_." Clarke said quietly.

" _May I ask why?_ "

" _Just don't tell her please, it won't do any good and she'll know soon enough anyway_."

" _Very well_." Lydia said looking at Clarke. " _I will see you at the feast tonight_."

Darkness come pretty quickly and soon everyone at the village is eating & laughing together.  
Clarke is at a table inside the communal hut with her husband talking to Lydia while the twins play with the dog when she see Bellamy coming toward her.

"Hey Clarke." he said. "I've talked a little with the others and we think you should be the one who name the village."

Clarke look at Vik with a smile then back at Bellamy.

" _Idon_." she said grinning.

"Eden huh?" he said looking at Vik for a second. "Good choice princess. I will announce it in a moment."

"I'll have to show you something tomorrow." she said. "I've been working on it for quite some time and I think it's ready now."

"Should I be worried?" he said a little more seriously.

"No nothing like that. You remember our history lessons?" she asked and looked as he nodded. "I've always wondered why grounders were so careless about defense. Anyway, you'll see tomorrow."

The night goes on and before too long everyone is asleep.  
Clarke is in front of her home looking at the village thinking about the little time she has left before Lexa come here to see her and about what will happen next.  
She sigh and go back inside to sleep vowing to herself she would do whatever it takes to make sure her daughters never end up in Polis.


	6. Riders

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa  
The Unkown lands

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa's caravan left Polis five days ago and they are already on the road to Idon. Lydia told her Bellamy offered the family to name the village and that the woman choosed this one without hesitation. Idon was a nice name and one that fit the situation pretty well.  
She had to admit it was a smart move, a seemingly small offer which only goal was to build trust. Bellamy is smart, it is why she had approved his request to lead this caravan.  
Lydia also told her about the dangers the family warned them about, a giant snake in a lake close to the village, bears in the mountains and possibly a Pauna. It seems the warriors she brought will be useful even if the negotiations with the family goes well.  
She knew the bears in the mountains would make it impossible to build the radio tower as long as it was not dealt with so she decided this would be the first thing they would deal with after the negotiations.  
Lexa knew Lydia had more to say but she didn't want hear it at the moment, she would have enough time to talk with her on the journey.

There was sixty people among the Commander's caravan. There are sixty-four horses and two carts, one for food & water and one for Raven's tek, everything she will need to build the radios for the villages and the radio tower.

The Commander's caravan use the same road Bellamy used so they know the road would be relatively cleared.  
Lexa knew that even if that was the case, it was always better to be prepared even though nothing would likely happen.

Lexa thought about building an outpost or two to make this road easier but she had delayed it at the moment because they had to make sure the villages would be successfully built.  
Now she know for sure and she knew these outposts would be vital if others were to travel to the new villages with more ease.

The camp was set up an hour ago and it was already dark and Lexa was about to go to her tent when she heard some grumbling coming from the fire.  
Raven sit in front of the fire probably working on building parts for the radio.

"What are you doing here Raven?" Lexa said. "You should go get some rest."

"My leg is killing me thanks to the horse so nope I'm not sleeping." Raven said sighing. "It wouldn't have happened with rover two."

"I have already explained you Raven, your vehicles are too important for the Coalition." Lexa stated. "We cannot risk even one on this journey, at least not until we make a proper road."

"It's risky for the other vehicles yes but not with rover. Rough terrain was it's first purpose before you and Abby decided to only use them for emergency calls."

"We cannot afford any delays and there was too many ways things could go wrong with one of your vehicles. Horses cannot get stuck."

"Yeah well I got soft over the years and I kinda forgot how much the horses used to hurt." Raven said wincing. "I'm pretty sure I'm gonna feel like a granny when we reach that village."

"Why did you come Raven?" Lexa asked. "You knew we would not use the vehicles and you could've just sent Wick, Monty or one of the other appentices."

"We have a radio tower to build, my appentices may know how to build radios but they wouldn't know where to build the tower."

"You could have told them."

"I wanted to leave alright? I just wanted to go far away from my responsibilities for a while." Raven said quietly. "And I didn't ask Monty because I don't want him to risk his life over this. He's married now and..."

"You are not?"

"Yeah that's it, I don't have anyone." Raven said sighing. "I mean look at me. It's been ten years and what have I done beside building shits and fuck with every people I've met?"

"You help people Raven. Do not sell yourself short because you found no lover yet."

"You know that's real cute coming from you." Raven said frowning. "What do you know about love? Because I don't recall ever seeing you with anyone."

"To be the Commander is to be alone."

"My ass!" Raven scoffed.

"I had a lover and she died because of me so yes I am alone."

"Sorry."

"It happened a long time ago."

"So you've been alone ever since?"

"Yes." Lexa said. "I did try to express my feelings to another after but it did not end well either."

"What, she died too?"

"No, she is not dead." Lexa said firmly still refusing to believe what everyone think.

"What then?" Raven asked. "She didn't love you?"

"I betrayed her."

"Why?" she asked confused.

"We were at war and I had to make a choice. I could either save all of my people without a fight and leaving hers behind. Or I could fight with her to save both our people, risking the lives of many doing so." Lexa said. "I made that decision with my head and not with my heart."

"Clarke? You loved Clarke?" she said while her eyes widened. Lexa nodded. "Holy crap, I did not see that one coming."

"I loved her." Lexa said. 'I still do' she thought but will never admit it. "But she was not ready to be with anyone so nothing happened. Shortly after, I betrayed her and well you know the rest of the story."

"At least that explain why she never came back. She didn't want to face you."

"I always thought she would eventually come back to her people. I do not understand why she never did."

"You think she's still alive?" Raven asked.

"I do not believe she is dead."

"I don't think she's dead either but I think it's clear she moved on now. Wherever she is, she won't come back home."

Lexa sighed looking at the fire.

"You should sleep Raven." Lexa said getting up. "Goodnight."

Lexa moved toward her tent, she looked at the moon thinking about where Clarke was and what she was doing.  
She is still thinking about her as she get in bed and try to sleep.

 

* * *

 

Six days later, Lexa is asleep in her tent when howlings jerk her awake. She grab her coat and go outside to check on the guards.  
They tell her there is no immediate threat and she is about to go back in her tent when she see Lydia on the east side of the camp standing watch.  
She remember then that she needed to speak with her about the family.

Lydia look at her and bow.

" _Lydia, you have spent many days with the family in that village. Did you learn more about them?_ " Lexa asked quietly.

" _Yes Heda_." she said taking a breath. " _When we arrived and I gave your answer, the woman reacted like she already knew the answer. Her husband took her away for a moment and when they came back, the woman said we could stay and then went inside her home_."

Lexa then knew the man would definitely help her make it work.

" _Then the man asked me to lead him to the caravan so he could welcome them. When the caravan reached the family's home, Bellamy offered gifts to the family_."

" _What gifts?_ " Lexa asked.

" _Two horses, a stallion and a mare who were captured on the journey and books for the childrens_."

The horses were a good gift, the man is Ingranrona so he must have appreciated the gesture. The books however while thoughtful were unlikely to be of use since both of them left before Skaikru taught the clans how to read.

" _The man seemed honored by those gifts_."

" _The woman, was she hostile toward the caravan when you arrived?_ "

" _No, she did not come to welcome the caravan when we first arrived and did not left her home until the next day. She helped build the village and was not hostile toward anyone after_."

That was interesting, now Lexa was sure the real problem was the law and the woman did not seem willing to hurt her people.

" _And the rest of the family?_ "

" _They get along with everyone, the man helped everyone however he could and the childrens were very curious to see the caravan, sometimes they helped the parents working but mostly played and trained_."

" _Training?_ "

" _The parents teach them how to hunt and use the bow & knives_." Lydia said. Lexa nodded.

" _How old do you think the childrens are?_ "

" _Eight summers_."

" _Both of them?_ "

" _Yes, they are twins_."

Lexa's eyebrows twitched at that. Twins are rare among the coalition and always raise interest.

" _Anything else?_ " Lexa asked.

" _No Heda_."

" _Good. Go back to your duty then_." Lexa said dismissing her.

Lexa go back to her tent and as she get inside, she hear howlings again.  
She take off her coat and get in bed thinking about a way to deal with the bears when they reach Idon.  
Hunting the bears on the mountain would surely be a challenge since they would have to hunt them on foot and risk having to fight more than one at same time.  
No, it wasn't worth it. She decided that they would lure them off of the mountains and kill them one by one. She knew it will take time to get rid of all of them but it was the safest way.  
She think briefly about the giant snake and decide it will have to wait as they have yet to find a way to kill it.  
She close her eyes and let sleep come to her.

 

* * *

 

Five days later, the caravan stopped to set up camp at nightfall. They stopped at the edge of the old world city.  
Lexa sat on a large rock looking at the city.

She admired it from afar. It reminded her of Polis in a way. Not much trees and buildings still standing but she couldn't keep thinking how similar it could be if enough work was put into it.  
Still, even though it was possible, there was a long way to go before they could even think about cleaning up that place.

She put the thoughts away, get off the rock and walk to her tent.

 

* * *

 

The next day, the caravan go through the city and clear some of the rubble along the way for the next caravans who will go through.

As they go, the caravan passes a large building with a few columns in front of it and some sort of small tower on top of it.  
The left side of the building has collapsed but the rest of it seems strong.

Lexa stop a moment in front of it thinking about how beautiful it must have been before.

This city may be mostly destroyed but she was sure her people would find many treasures in it.

She take one last look at the building and turn around to catch up with the caravan.  
They stop at nightfall to set up camp.  
Lexa see they're close to the edge of the city and she knows they will reach Idon in two days.

 

* * *

 

The day after, the caravan leave the city in the morning and move south. The following day, Lexa decide to send a warrior ahead to warn the village of their arrival.

Another day pass and as the caravan reached the family's lands about an hour ago, Lexa can hear a rider approaching from behind.  
She doesn't look as she already knew who it was.

" _Heda_." Lydia said. " _We are close. The village is just behind that hill_."

Lexa nod and look at the hill. Moments later, two riders appear on top of it and observe them.  
One of the riders come toward the caravan at full speed. The other remain on top of the hill.

The first one coming at full speed is on top of a brown horse and is a tall man in full gear. She stop looking at him when she see it is the warrior she sent last day.  
The other one is on top of a white horse, look rather short and slim with long blonde hair. Definitely a woman.

The first rider slow down and finally stop in front of her, bow then move to the back of the caravan.  
Lexa look back at the hill only to find it empty, the other rider is gone.

The caravan make it's way to the top of the hill and when they finally reach it, Lexa stop a moment to take a look at the village.

She can see the lake and a clearing on the western part of the village. A large hut is built at the center of the village with smaller ones around it.  
She can see most of the huts are close to each other except for two at the north eastern part of the village.  
The first is a long hut built around a few trees, probably the family's hut if she had to guess. It seems Bellamy choosed to let them have their privacy.  
The other one is a large hut built on higher ground. There is nothing but a watchtower around it so she is sure this one was built for her.

She look at the entrance of the village and she can see the villagers are massed there waiting for her.  
Lexa raise her and the caravan begin following her as she make her way down the hill.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So about the Clarke/Lexa/OC tag:
> 
> I never intended for the Lexa/OC relationship to actually go physical at any point in the story. I was looking for a Lexa/Gustus kind of love.  
> So no I do no intend to force a penis in Lexa, I just can't see it happening.


	7. Conditions

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa ride in front of the caravan, her back straight and her head high.  
As she approach the entrance of the village, she could hear people cheering her name.  
She quickly look at them and the first thing Lexa notice is the piece of wood the warriors have strapped to their back. It looks like a round table without legs. She frown a moment wondering why they would burden themselves with this. She will have to ask Bellamy about this later.  
She let her gaze drop on Bellamy as he moved forward.

" _Heda_." Bellamy said as he bowed. " _Welcome to Idon_."

She nod but say nothing, instead she raise her head and look at the people gathered.

" _I see I was right in my decision to let you lead my people to these lands. I am pleased to see how much you have all accomplished. You have all done great work. You have built the first of the many steps toward a better future and for this I am grateful. I am proud to call you my people_." she said loud enough for all to hear.

The villagers cheered her name as she gave command to the caravan to move forward.  
She move aside with Bellamy to let them pass.

"I have been told there are a few problems that require a solution." Lexa stated. "The warriors I brought with me will start hunting the bears in a few days. As for the beast in the lake, I will have to see with Raven."

"Thank you Heda." Bellamy said making a gesture with his hand at Raven. "Will you go visit the family now or do you have time for a quick tour of the village?"

"I wish to take a look at the work of my people, show me." Lexa replied as the last cart passes in front of them.

Lexa dismount and give the reins of her horse to one of the men behind Bellamy.  
They make their way into the village and as they reach the communal hut, she can see a man talking with two childrens. 'So this is the family' she thinks. The man stopped talking when he saw her approaching, the childrens saw his reaction and turned.  
When they did, Lexa took a closer look at the twins and stopped in her tracks. The twins are both blonde of hair, exactly the same as Clarke and she felt like she was seeing a ghost when she saw their eyes. Blue eyes. Same as the ones she keep seeing in her dreams. She frown and look away briefly to regain her composure. 'This can't just be a coincidence' she thinks.

Over the years, Lexa thought she saw Clarke a few times in the streets of Polis. Each time, the woman had blonde hair but each time, the woman had brown eyes. Each time, it felt like her heart broke. She couldn't help it though, hope was the only thing she had and the only thing that kept her going.

She put these thoughts away and when she look back at the family, the twins are almost in front of her and the man isn't far behind. She tried to focus on the man because she knew she wouldn't be able to think about anything but Clarke if she kept looking at the two girls. But one of the twins spoke then.

" _I am Yova and this is Youki_." the first girl said pointing to herself and then to her sister.

" _And you are Heda_." Youki said narrowing her eyes. " _Mom said you and her are going to talk later and that we had to stay with Bell. Why do you want to talk with my mom?_ "

" _We will talk about rules_." she said simply. " _You all live among other people now and there are rules you and your parents will have to follow_."

The twins both nodded. She notice the man take a step between his daughters and bow.

" _Heda. I am Vik kom Ingranrona_."

She notice the man only made brief eye contact with her. She's used to this but there is something more. It's obvious he has something to say but he won't talk unless I allow him to. She decide he will have to wait the end of the tour so she nod and look at Bellamy.

"Make it quick. I have many other things that require my attention."

"We can show you if you want?" Yova said.

Lexa want to say no but she have no reason to so she nod at the twins and let them resume the tour.

The tour took half an hour as the girls stopped at each hut to tell her the name of everyone. Lexa greeted each of them but always made it quick.  
She was too distracted. She was surprised by how well they spoke Gonasleng and she couldn't help but stare at the girls all along and as their father kept looking at her with strange expressions, she probably didn't make such a good job at hiding it.  
Lexa decided to end the tour when they reached the family's home and the only hut left was hers so she will have plenty of time to take a look at it after she talk with the family.  
That's what she told herself but she couldn't wait any longer, she had to meet the mother of these girls. She had to know if the woman in there truly was Clarke.

"It was very nice of you to show me everything there is to see but it is time for your parents and I to talk."

"Yeah come on girls, it's time to go training anyway. Besides, we have to go find Bluma" Bellamy said taking both girls by the hand and making his way toward the horse pen.

Lexa looked at them a moment and then turned to Vik.

" _You may speak freely_." she said authoritatively.

" _We understand the laws Heda. We only wish to know if there is a way to exempt our family of a few of them. The laws I am speaking of will never put the lives of your people at risk and should you allow this, we shall forever be indebted to you_."

" _I came here with the intention to negotiate with you and your wife. If the laws you are speaking of only concern your family then we will find a way_." Lexa said. " _I wish to speak privately with your wife first_."

" _I am sorry Heda but my wife expect the both of us and I do not know how she will react if you go inside alone_." Vik said as his eyes widened a bit.

" _Do you believe she would make an attempt on my life?_ "

" _No Heda_."

" _Then I go alone. Wait here until I come back_." she said quickly as she was already moving toward the hut.

Lexa climb a few stairs and find herself on the front porch of the hut. She can see a rolled up fur strapped at the top of the door and a long table with two short bows and a few arrows on it.  
She take a deep breath and go inside the hut.

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke is sitting at the table with her back at the door when she hear light footsteps on the stairs. She knows it's not her daughters because she asked Bellamy to keep them during the negotiations.  
She know who it is. Who else could it be? Who else but the girl who betrayed her. The girl she loathed all those years ago. The girl she couldn't keep out of her mind for so many months. The girl she was finally able to forget the first time she held two angels in her arms.  
The girl she couldn't help but think about the day a messenger came. The girl she hoped wouldn't break her world a second time. The girl she saw from the top of that hill not even an hour ago. The girl about to step into her life once again.  
She hear a few more steps and then she knows, she know she's at the door looking at her.

"Clarke?" Lexa asked quietly.

She didn't move or say anything. Her mind was just blank.

Lexa move slowly toward her. "Clarke..." she hear again this time almost a whisper.

Lexa stopped. She's right behind her, she can feel it, she can hear her breathing.

"Clarke!" Lexa said a little louder as she put her hand on Clarke's shoulder.

At this Clarke shake her head and suddenly get up. She take a few steps towards the couch and let out an inaudible sigh. She turn and look at her.

"Lexa." she said coldly as she tried to hide her surprise.

Lexa is still very much the same. It's almost like she left yesterday, the clothes she wear however look different. The coat looks heavier and much stronger than the ones she used to wear. 'I guess the grounders did learn a few things' Clarke thought as she look at her shirt. It looks bulky and she wonder if Lexa just got incredibly stronger or if she's wearing something underneath.  
Lexa's wearing her usual paint so she can't see much of her face. She can see her eyes and her lips though and she remember how good it made her feel even if it didn't last.

"Clarke I-"

"Where is Vik?" she asked cutting her off, she cross her arms and frown. "Why is he not here?"

"I asked him to wait outside. I wanted to speak with you first."

"And I suppose you haven't given him much of a choice didn't you?" Clarke asked bitterly.

"I-" Lexa started but Clarke didn't let her answer.

"You know what? Don't answer that. You wanted to talk to me? Go ahead and make it quick."

Lexa didn't say anything, she just eyed her up & down and it made her feel uncomfortable even though she did exactly the same thing just a moment ago.

"That's it? You're just gonna keep staring at me like at?"

Lexa blinked a few times. "What is there to say? You do not wish to listen."

"Does it surprise you?"

"Yes it does since you are the one who wishes to negotiate."

"We're not going to talk about that day Lexa. I know you want to but it's not going to happen."

"As you wish." Lexa said calmly. She looked at her feet a second and then looked back at Clarke. "Why go so far away?"

"I wanted to know if going far enough would make the dreams go away."

"Did it work?"

"Not completely but yes it did work eventually."

"Why didn't you come back?"

"Isn't it obvious?" Clarke said with a little smirk.

"You know what I meant." Lexa replied bitterly.

"And what would have happened if I came back? You would have asked me to lead again. Am I wrong?"

"You were born for this Clarke."

"I have a family now and I'm not going to lead again. I don't want to be responsible for more death, I just can't do it anymore."

"Yet when the messenger came back from here and told me of your demands, you were ready to kill if things didn't go your way. Were you not?"

"I don't want to kill people but I will not let anyone harm my family and I will certaintly not let you or your people-" Clarke bit her tongue and cursed herself for being this stupid.

"I am not going to hurt your family Clarke. Why would I do that?" Lexa asked narrowing her eyes lightly.

"My family is not your people and we both know what happen to those who aren't your people." Clarke spat. She look away from Lexa and go sit on the couch. "We're done talking about this. I told you I wouldn't follow your laws and I'm not going to. So now you will go tell Vik to come here, you're going to explain to us your damn laws and then you will leave."

Lexa sigh and move toward the door but stop a moment and look behind. "For someone who does not wish to lead, you sure give many orders Clarke."

Clarke watch her leave the hut and sigh deeply. Lexa come back with Vik only a moment later.  
Vik look at Clarke and move to the table to grab a chair and put it in front of the couch. He then go sit on the couch with Clarke while Lexa sat on the chair.  
She look at Lexa a moment, her expression changed and all she can see is the Commander.

"Your husband told me you would be willing to follow my laws if I was willing to exempt you of a few of them. Is it true?" Lexa asked.

"I am." Clarke replied firmly. "But something tell me you're not just going to say yes to everything I ask so let's just cut the crap. What to you want?"

Vik look briefly between Clarke and Lexa confused as to why the Commander let his wife talk to her like this.

"I will not make any demands until I know which laws you are speaking of."

"Alright, this will be pretty quick." Clarke started. "You and your people have to respect our privacy. Should you wish to speak with any of us, you will need the approval of either myself or my husband. The only exception being in case of emergency. Next, neither you or any of your people will have the right to give us any orders. We are not your people and you will have no power over us. And last, if you or any of your people were to harm our daughters in any way even if it's just a simple cut, we will have the right to defend them however we see fit without any consequences."

Lexa look pensive and doesn't say anything.

"I am willing to respect the other laws if you accept this. I will work, hunt and even fight with any of you as long as you ask first. And believe it or not, I can even teach you a few things. In fact, I have been teaching your people for a few weeks." She said softly.

Lexa's still silent. Clarke look at her trying to understand what she's thinking about but then Lexa frown and look straight at her.

"They are like me." Lexa stated.

Clarke goes white for a moment, she hear Vik sigh and then she see red.  
She reach for the fur under the couch and take the rifle. She get ready to point it at Lexa when Vik grab her hands and stop her from going further.

"This is not the way Clarke!" he said.

"Then what is?!" She almost screamed. "She knows and you know what they'll do!"

"We can still find a way. Give me the gun."

"No! I won't just do nothing." Clarke said as she tried to jerk away but Vik didn't budge.

"I am not going to hurt your family." Lexa said.

"Are you going to take my childrens away from me?" Clarke asked seriously.

"Not necessarily. Many things have changed since you left."

"So you're telling me there is a way where we can all stay here together?" Clarke asked suspiciously.

"I have changed some of the laws regarding the nightbloods."

"I don't care about what you changed, all I want to know is if they can stay with us or not."

"According to the law? No."

"Then I guess we're done here." Clarke said as she looked at Vik again clearly expecting him to release her.

"However since there was no need for another Commander in many years, I am willing to make an exception for you."

"Will you let them stay with us or not? I won't ask again Lexa."

"They will stay with you in Idon but there are conditions of course." Lexa started. "First, your daughters will have to be trained like the other nightbloods. I will be the one teaching them until I can find a teacher."

"As long as they don't get hurt, I will have no problem with that." Clarke said as she let go of the rifle and sit back on the couch.

"Second condition. Since I allow this, your daughters training will have to remain a secret. No one must know they are nightbloods."

"No one knew except Bellamy and that's because I told him. I'm not going to tell that to anyone else."

"Third condition, I expect the both of you to help me or my people whenever we need it."

"We did that since the caravan arrived and we're still doing it, I have no problem with that either."

"Fourth condition, I want to speak with you once a week."

"About what?" Clarke asked with a sigh.

"Anything I want."

"Fine." Clarke said bitterly.

"Last condition, one day I will ask you to do something for me and you will have to do it no matter what."

"How do I know you won't ask me to give up my daughters?" Clarke asked frowning.

"I give you my word."

"Yeah like your word mean so much to me." Clarke scoffed.

"Do you accept or not?" Lexa asked evenly.

"Yes." Clarke said gritting her teeth.

"Then your daughters can stay." Lexa stated. "Now I expect the both of you to follow the other laws, is it clear?"

Vik nodded and looked at Clarke.

"Are you still going to respect our privacy?"

"I will."

"Then I will follow your laws. Now if there is nothing else you want to talk about, I would like you to leave my home."

Lexa nod, get off the chair and walked toward the door.

"Wait here." Clarke murmured to Vik.

She walk quickly to the door to catch up with Lexa and grabbed her hand to lead her outside.  
They stop at the stairs and Clarke look at Lexa.

"I just wanted you to know how serious I am about this. If you hurt them or if you even think about taking them away from me, I will kill you."

Clarke didn't give her a chance to answer, she climbed down the stairs and walked toward Bellamy's hut.


	8. Reflection

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Lexa is in her hut, she sit on her throne with her chin resting on one of her hands.  
She didn't bother taking a look around, she was recalling every single moments that happened since she stepped into Clarke's home.

Clarke's first reaction was not as bad as she had imagined, she tried to be cold but it was obvious she was surprised to see her and she sure took her time to take a good look at her.  
Lexa didn't show it but she had to hide the smile that was slowly growing on her face. She didn't want to hide it of course but she knew how Clarke would have reacted so it was for the best.  
And then Clarke asked where Vik was. Where her husband was. Clarke has a husband now and as if it didn't hurt her enough to know the one Clarke loved wasn't her, she also had two daughters that would definitely remind her that she could be happy without her.  
Despite that she did see how Clarke was looking at her, at least this did not change.  
Clarke's next answer felt like a fist her stomach though. The betrayal was still very much present in her mind and it was clear she wasn't going to give her the answers she was looking for so Lexa choosed to remain silent. She took the opportunity to take a better look at Clarke and she didn't hide it either.

Clarke changed but not that much. She have very long hair now and it goes all the way down her back. She was wearing a shirt and pants made of hide so it was difficult to see her but Lexa could still make out the shape of her body. If Clarke didn't seem strong when they met, there is no doubt about it now.  
Last thing she noticed is the tatoo on her neck. Trishanakru by the look of it, three large dots side by side, a small one under and another big dot beneath it.  
She may not have changed much but it is enough to make her more beautiful than she was when they met.

As Lexa had suspected at first, Clarke didn't want to talk about the mountain. While she couldn't talk about what she wanted to, she was still able learn a few things about the blonde.  
For one, she did get over her ghosts and perhaps she even forgave herself but there was no way to be sure about that.

The next question she asked her came with an unexpected answer though 'isn't it obvious?' and this one had hurt so much she wasn't able to reply as she was supposed to.  
Clarke now have a family and she's not part of it. If Lexa had doubts about it before, Clarke made everything clear at least.

Still, Clarke remained polite with her next answer. She is not willing to lead anymore, hardly surprising considering she now have to take care of her family.  
This will become a problem though because Lexa still want her to lead. She just have to find a way to make her accept it. Maybe if she can convince her it could benefit her family somehow?  
Clarke is afraid of being responsible for the death of others but it won't be a problem, there is no more war so she won't have to send people to their death.

Lexa wasn't proud of the way she had tricked Clarke after but it was necessary and she was able to learn what the negotiations would be about early on which gave her time to prepare.  
Clarke was clearly worried about what she'd do to her family and when Lexa tried to assure her of their safety, she was ready for her next answer.

Clarke's demands after the negotiations began were smart and in no way exaggerated.  
Everything she asked for was seemingly to ensure the safety of the whole family. Lexa could've been fooled if it wasn't for the last demand. It was an overly protective rule, one focused only on her daughters and one that had nothing to do with privacy.  
After that, Lexa didn't listen to what was being said because she started to think about why Clarke would want to protect her daughters so much.

Clarke's rules were made to keep people from being in contact with her daughters more than anything else.  
The twins themselves seems to have no problem talking with others and Clarke probably didn't mind so why ask this now?  
The only reason Lexa can think of is because Clarke's family have to follow the laws now. The childs of a family and the laws. In that case, the only reason to be afraid of the law would be if your child is a nightblood. In this case, this is the only law that could make Clarke afraid of the Coalition.

So now Lexa think about the twins and what Lydia told her about them. About their training more specifically, bows and knives only. Everything these girls trained with minimalised the risk of harm in front of others.  
That's when she recall Clarke's words 'even a simple cut'. She didn't want her girls to get harmed because she didn't want anyone to see them bleed.  
So that was the most obvious reason Lexa could find and she had decided to go with it.

It was the right guess but it had an unexpected outcome.  
Clarke's reaction was far worse than what she had anticipated. Lexa didn't expect Clarke to actually try to kill her.  
The gun was unlike those of Skaikru and the Maunon. It was long and mostly made of wood. She had never saw one like this before.  
If it wasn't for Vik stopping her, she think Clarke would've done it. All she could see in her eyes was a mix of rage and fear.  
The rage was something Lexa was accustomed to and it was easy to handle. The fear in her eyes was something else however. Clarke seemed sure she would take her daughters from her.  
But she would never do that to her, especially not after finally finding her after so long. Lexa swore to herself after Clarke left that she would never hurt her again.

Clarke wouldn't listen though, she didn't trust her anymore and anything Lexa said would fall on deaf ears so she decided to force her to follow some rules if she allowed her daughters to stay.  
She knew it wasn't the best way to make Clarke trust her again but it was the only way to calm her and make her listen.

Clarke accepted the first three rules without protesting but she didn't enjoy the last ones though.  
The last rule was the one that really mattered because it was the one thing Lexa could use to force Clarke to lead again. She hoped she wouldn't have to force her to but she knew she might not be able to convince her to so it was the only way she had to make sure she would.  
Lexa thought about it briefly and concluded that the best position for her would be to become the chief of this village. Not too many responsibilities and it gave her a chance to protect her daughters if something happened. And it also make Clarke's family her people so perhaps it would reassure her of their safety.

Not much happened after this so Lexa thought about what Clarke did when she was about to leave.  
More specifically when Clarke took her hand. She was glad Clarke couldn't see her because the large smile on her face was something the blonde wouldn't have appreciated.  
She was able to hide it quickly by the time they stopped at the stairs. Lexa definitely didn't smile anymore after Clarke's threat.  
There was no hint of fear or rage in her eyes in that moment, she knew Clarke would kill anyone trying to separate her from her daughters.

Lexa put her head in her hands and sigh deeply.  
They have a long way to go before they can go back to what they were before the mountain, if that is even possible.  
Yet despite all this, she can't help but smile because even after everything that just happened, she still found her and this is the closest thing she had to happiness since the mountain.  
She get off her throne and see it's getting dark. It's almost time to go to the feast in her honor.

 

* * *

 

An hour later, Lexa is seated at the largest table inside the communal hut. She talked with a few of the villagers over the night about the Coalition, Polis and the new roads that will have to be built.  
She can see Clarke and her family at one of the other tables with Bellamy and Echo.

Echo. The woman she saved at the mountain. The one that still fought alongside Nia during the war.  
But also the one that helped her reaching Nia when the queen ordered the remnants of her army to attack Lexa while she could run away with her personal guard.  
The woman that became the personal guard of King Roan during seven years before leaving her clan to live with Bellamy in Dale.  
Lexa had been suspicious of the woman after she betrayed Nia but when she left Azgeda to live with a Skaikru among other Trikru, she had no doubt the woman's loyalty belonged to Bellamy then.

Right now, she's alone struggling to keep her eyes from wandering over Clarke's figure. She know too many eyes are on her and she don't want to get caught staring at her.  
So she let her gaze drop on Bellamy and remember she still have to ask him about the piece of wood her warriors were carrying.  
After a moment, he eventually look over her and understand she want to talk to him.  
He nod, leave his table and make his way to her.

"Heda." Bellamy said as he bowed.

"Upon my arrival, I noticed my warriors carrying these large pieces of wood on their back. Tell me what they are."

"Shields. They are used for protection. By carrying these, a warrior can withstand the hits of arrows and swords. It give the warriors a better chance at survival. I never noticed grounders didn't have these until Clarke pointed it out." he said. "It would've been helpful during the war with Azgeda."

"Clarke made them?" she asked surprised.

"Some yes, Clarke showed me one a month back. When we began training with it, some of the warriors gathered to watch us. After two days, a few of them were curious and asked us to teach them how to use it. Clarke taught two of the villagers how to make them and soon after, every warriors started training with them like they did with any other weapons."

"I see." she started. "I wish to talk about this with Clarke. Tell her I need to talk to her."

"Yes Heda."

Bellamy then turned and walked back toward his table.

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Clarke is at the table eating with her husband and the twins. She was speaking with Bellamy & Echo until Bell suddenly got off the table to go over Lexa.  
She looked at them wondering what they could possibly be talking about.

But then she feel something between her legs. She look down and see Bluma gazing at her clearly expecting something. She sigh briefly and smile.

" _Hang in there, I'll get you a little something_." she whispered scratching his head.

Clarke take a quick look at the table, pick up a small chunk of meat and give it to the dog.

" _Here you go_." she said smiling.

" _You're not supposed to feed him while we eat you know?_ " Vik said with a small grin.

" _It's not my fault, the meat just slipped through my fingers_." she said with a chuckle.

Clarke startle a little when she feel a hand on her shoulder, she look behind and see Bellamy.

"Clarke, the Commander want to talk to you." he said as he sat at the table.

"Alright." she said sighing.

Clarke take a look at the dog briefly and then get off the table.  
She quickly walk toward Lexa and take a seat beside her.

"What do you want?"

"The shields. How did you come up with this idea?" Lexa asked.

"School." she said simply.

"School?"

"And from you."

"What do you mean?"

"That day at the mountain, you used big metal plates to take cover from the mountain men's bullets. You already had the idea but you were too busy betraying me to see it." she spat.

"Why did it take you so long to make them then?" Lexa asked after a moment of silence.

"I didn't know how to make a shield back then and after I got here, I didn't have any reason to make one. Well until...you know."

"I see. If those shields of yours truly are as helpful as Bellamy said they are then I will have a task for you."

"And what task would that be?" she asked sighing.

"When the time come, I want you to teach the people that will come here how to make them."

"Oh. Yeah sure, why not." she said surprised. "Is that all then? Can I go?"

"Did anyone tell you about what happened after you left?" Lexa asked softly.

"Bell told me roughly what happened yeah."

"Is there anything you would like to know more about?"

"The books. How much did it helped your people?"

"Roads and bridges made life easier for the entire Coalition. Farming and woodworking is something we already knew how to do but it made our own skills even better, Floukru is building boats now and we learned how to use seeds too. Steel helped us make much stronger weapons. Medicine, thanks to your people, helped us fight diseases and make our elders live longer. Lately, my people is learning calligraphy so one day we will be able to make books and write down our history."

"So life is better for everyone then?" Clarke asked with a small smile.

"Yes, even Azgeda. Reopening their borders for trading was the best thing that could've happened to them."

"Azgeda..." she murmured. "So you finally got your revenge on Nia?"

"I did but it did not bring me any joy. Many died during this war."

"Right, well, that bitch had to die anyway." she said getting off the chair. "It's just a shame people had to die for someone like this. Goodnight."

"Goodnight Clarke." Lexa said gently.

She take a quick look at Lexa and went back to her family.

 

* * *

 

After an hour spent at the table, Clarke and her family went home.  
Vik and the twins are already asleep but she has too many things on her mind and is simply not tired.

Clarke get off the bed and get dressed. She goes outside and walk aimlessly around the village for a moment.  
Except for a few warriors and some guards, there is no one. She think about cleaning up the mess at the communal hut but when she get there, everything is clean.

She's about to go home when she see some light in the tek hut. She make her way there, discreetly move the fur and can see Raven working with some electronic components.

"I'm looking for a mechanic." she asked smiling as she get inside.

Raven suddenly grab a screwdriver on the table and turn to Clarke with a startled look on her face.

"Holy shit Griffin! What the fuck are you doing here?"

"Hey Raven. Long time no see hmm?"

Raven drop the screwdriver on the table and go give a hug to Clarke.

"Damn girl, you totally got ripped!" Raven said putting her hands all over Clarke's body.

"Yeah I know." she said looking at her leg. "Does it still hurt you?"

"Nah not usually, I just lost my touch with horses." Raven said putting up a small smile. "You still haven't answered my question by the way."

"Oh you know, I live here."

"Oooh so you are the mystery girl then. You know, you gave quite a few headaches to the ambassadors back in Polis. The woods clan, the boat people, the glowing forest and us were all against the choice of forcing you to leave and that shit went on for so many days. The Commander eventually settled it for everyone." Raven started but stopped speaking when she realised something. "Wait a second! The two kids and the big guy I saw when we arrived, that's your family then?"

Clarke look at Raven, she can see the thousand questions on her lips dying to come out. She smile and nod.

"Well, I hope you're not tired 'cause we really need to talk." Raven said as she sat on her bed. "Come on, it's gonna be a long night."

Clarke go sit on the bed with her and take a deep breath.

"Alright shoot."

"Okay let's start at the beginning. Where the fuck have you been?!"

"After I left camp-. Nevermind, Arkadia. After I left Arkadia, I knew it would only be a matter of time before someone started looking for me so the first thing I did was dying my hair. I used some kind of red berries, it worked really well. Anyway, after that I decided to go as far away from Trikru territory as I could. I went through the Blue cliff & Glowing forest territories and then I ended up in the Plains riders territory. Also I met a girl in the Glowing forest territory who did this pretty little tatoo." Clarke said as she showed her the tatoo.

"Sweet. Does it mean anything?"

"I don't know if it's supposed to but it does to me. The three dots at the top means my people, family and love. The little one under is myself and the other is home. It reminds me of who I was."

"Love..." Raven said sticking her tongue between her teeth and smiling. "I know about you two."

"I don't really want to talk about her right now Raven." Clarke said sighing.

"Alright I get it, no Commander talk for now. Where were we then?"

"Plains riders territory. So after I crossed the last border, I kind of wandered until I reached this little village called Opolis. Yeah I know, how original right? Anyway, I stayed at this village a day or two to change clothes and eat something I didn't kill and then I went south. I didn't walk too long until I found this place, a waterfall, it was really nice so I spent a few days there. On my third day, I was bathing when I heard some noise in the trees behind me so I quickly got dressed and went see what it is. A minute or two after, I find my now husband perched high up on a tree with a big fucking smile on his face."

"Oh now it's getting interesting. Do tell."

"Well long story short and after a little slap or two, it turns out that little creep was spying on me for the last two days."

"How the fuck did he manage to make you fall for him after that?"

"Oh it took some time but he had some pretty good arguments. I mean he saved my life so there's that."

"Bad guys?"

"No, just bad luck. A few days after I left the waterfall, I went into a cave and met a bear." Clarke said raising her shirt a little to show the scars.

"Damn that fucker got you good."

"Yeah it was quite painful too. Anyway, Vik came in right after the bear got me and killed it. He carried me to Opolis and never left me again." Clarke said with a smile.

"Save your life, never leave you again. Got it." Raven said while Clarke gave her a confused look. "Oh I just make sure I remember this in case I need to win you over one of these days."

"Right. Well more or less two months after I got better, I decided to leave and go even further away before I had to settle for good."

"Why?"

"I was pregnant and if I was leaving, it had to happen quick before it got too dangerous."

"Ooh that's right, the kids. So I guess you both were very busy after you got better." Raven said with a large grin.

"Actually it happened pretty quickly and I didn't know I was pregnant at first because I was still recovering. I had a hard time figuring out why I was feeling like shit when I was supposed to get better but I eventually managed to put two and two together."

"Whoa wait a second. When did you two exactly...?"

"Two days after the waterfall." Clarke murmured.

"Okay wow! Some dude was creeping on you and you have nothing better to do than jump his bones? No wonder he was still tailing you after then."

"Oh you know, I was weak, he was good looking and I was convinced he would leave after so I thought it was a great idea."

"Shame on you." Raven said frowning. "Alright, that tell me about the first kid but not the other."

"They're twins Raven."

"Okay for my defense, I only saw their back and it was for just a moment so I couldn't possibly know that. I mean I was a little busy so you know." Raven said putting her hands up. "You totally have to present me to your little family tomorrow."

"I'd love to." Clarke said with a big smile.

Clarke and Raven talked like that for an hour before they both agreed to call it night.  
Clarke made her way back home thinking about everything that happened today.  
She knows the next days with Lexa will be challenging because she's sure the green eyed girl will not just let her live her little life in peace.


	9. In between

~~  ~~  ~~

Bellamy  
The Unknown lands

~~  ~~  ~~

Bellamy is riding a horse near the mountains.

He can see Echo and a few other warriors spread out further north surveying the area.  
The morning after the Commander's arrival, he was given the task of finding the safest roads between each of the villages.

They've been looking for any kind of danger for the past day and could find nothing but traces of elks, deers and rabbits so far.  
He knew the first village wouldn't be too far ahead now and it was about to get dark so he decided it was time to set up camp.

"I think it's safe to say we're far enough, you can relax." Bellamy said smiling.

"Being away from the bears coming from that mountain..." Echo said pointing at the mountain in the distance. "Doesn't mean there is no danger around here."

"I know, new lands mean more predators." he said raising his hands. "I want to show you something."

"What?"

"It's a surprise." he said taking her hand. "Come on, it's not far."

"If you get me killed, my spirit will come back to kick your ass."

"I don't mind, you do that everytime we spar." he said grinning. "I'm used to it now."

Echo follow him until he stop at the edge of the forest and crouch. She do the same and quickly notice a white deer a little further.

"Nice beast." she said readying her bow.

"What are you doing?"

"I never seen a deer like that before. It will make a beautiful pelt." she said taking a deep breath.

"Seriously? You're really going to kill it?"

Echo doesn't answer and let her arrow fly instead. It landed in the neck of the deer a brief moment after.

"I think I just did." Echo replied as she looked back at Bellamy.

"You're ruthless, you know that?" he said sighing.

"That deer is white, it was only a matter of time before the cats or the wolves got to her."

"Well I guess we'll never know now."

"We won't have to hunt for dinner at least."

"So much for romance I guess." he muttered to himself.

"Oh please, you know I like to hunt. What did you expect?"

"Let's just bring it back to camp."

They walk back in silence with the deer.  
After they got back to their tent, Echo start skinning the animal.

"Are you going to keep your mouth shut the whole time?"

Bellamy shrug.

"What do you want me to say, sorry for bringing dinner?"

"I just want you to let me show you how much I love you, that's all."

"I love you." Echo said simply. "And you love me, isn't it enough?"

"It is but I also want to do nice things for you too. Seeing Clarke after all this time made me realize that even though we love each other, we don't do much beside hunting, talking and well, you know."

"So what? You want a family?"

"I don't know. I mean, my sister has a kid and Clarke has two, both of them are settled." he said looking in her eyes. "I don't know if I want kids right now but I do want to live here. I want us to have a place to go back to."

"I like these lands so far. I wouldn't mind living here." Echo said smiling. "And if it can reassure you, I don't mind having childrens either."

Bellamy just stare at her and chuckle.

"What? You think I'm joking?" Echo asked confused.

"No nothing like that, I was just picturing you with a kid." Bellamy said grinning. "What a scary thought."

"You know, it's not a very smart move to make fun of a woman wielding a knive." she said narrowing her eyes.

"What can I say, I like living dangerously." he said as he started moving toward their tent. "I'm going to bed, don't take too long."

"You'd better not be asleep when I come." she said with a vicious smile.

Bellamy just walked inside the tent without saying anything.  
Tomorrow they will reach the first of the villages and will make their way to the second immediatly after giving news of the Commander's arrival.  
And when they come back to Idon, Bellamy and Echo will be building their own home.

~~  ~~  ~~

Vik  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Vik is at the sparring grounds watching his daughters about to begin training with the Commander.  
He can hear the sound of swords clashing together as twelve other warriors are training a little further.

" _Yesterday, you had shown me how much your parents had taught you_." Lexa said. " _Today, we will begin training and we will start with a staff. Do you know what it is?_ "

" _A big stick?_ " Yova asked.

" _Technically yes it is, only much stronger._ "

" _Why do we have to train with a stick?_ " Youki asked.

" _Because it will teach how to disarm an opponent without killing him. It will also teach you how to control yourself in difficult situations_." Lexa explained.

Lexa hand over a staff to each girls and assume a fighting stance.

" _Now, you need to know how to hold your staff_." Lexa said. " _First, you have to put your hands like this. One hand facing the sky and the other facing the ground_."

Vik take a last look at his daughters. Today he will go to the mountain with a few of the Commander's warriors to observe the bears and find the best way to lure them on open grounds.  
He is about to leave for the horse pen when someone jump on his back.

" _How come you never see that coming?_ " Clarke whispered to his ear as she put her arms around his neck.

" _What makes you think I don't?_ " he asked grinning.

" _Oh so that's all part of your plan then?_ "

" _It seems to be going well so far_."

" _You will have no problem if I stay on your back a little longer then?_ " Clarke said as she shifted to make it as uncomfortable as she could.

" _Not in the slightest_." he said grunting in pain.

" _How are they doing?_ " she asked as she tried to get on his shoulders. " _Are they going easy on Lexa?_ "

" _They have just started_."

" _The staff huh?_ " she said as Vik grabbed her by the thighs to pull her on his shoulders. " _Much better_."

" _It is good for them, it will teach them how to channel their energy_."

" _Yeah I hope it'll help because washing the dog every night is getting old_."

" _Listen, I have to tell you something_."

" _Oh_." she said disappointed.

" _I am leaving for the mountain with a few warriors, we need to find a way to take care of the bears_."

" _How long will you be gone?_ " she asked getting off his shoulders.

" _I will be back tomorrow night_."

" _I see_." she said sighing. " _Just be careful alright? And don't forget the blowpipe this time_."

" _I will be careful_." he said as he moved to kiss her. " _See you tomorrow my love_."

" _Tomorrow night, don't keep me waiting. Bye my love_."

Vik squeezed her hand one last time and moved toward the horse pen to meet with the other warriors.

~~  ~~  ~~

Youki & Yova  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

It's late in the afternoon and the twins are near the lake digging holes in the ground with the dog.  
It has been an hour and all three of them are covered in dirt.

" _Stop taking my rocks!_ " Youki said throwing a stick at her sister.

" _I'm making a house, I need rocks so it doesn't fall apart_."

" _Why don't you just plant the sticks in the ground?_ "

" _Because it's stronger if I put the rocks around it_." Yova replied.

" _Then find your own rocks!_ "

" _You're not even using them_."

" _Not yet. Dig more holes with Bluma and find your own_ -"

" _Fine!_ " Yova said as she started digging with her knive.

The dog look at her a moment and start digging too.

" _There are so many of these little pieces of metal in the ground. We should find a place to put everything we find_."

" _What about the tower? We can dig another hole there_."

" _Yes, like Bluma when we give him bones. We'll do it after_." Yova said picking up a large rock.

" _Look, Bluma found something!_ "

Youki get up and go see what the dog has between its teeth.

" _Give it_." Youki said as she tried to take the little piece of metal from the dog to no avail.

" _Bluma, let go!_ " Yova yelled. The dog immediately drop the small chunk of metal on the ground.

" _It looks like that thing mom always had around her neck_." Youki said as she picked it up.

" _It's not the same, this one is like the metal we find all the time but shiny_."

" _Well I like it so I'll keep it_." Youki said while putting the necklace around her neck.

" _You always get the nice things_."

" _It's almost time to go home, let's bury the things quickly_." Youki said grabbing her few pieces of metal.

Yova take a few pieces and take a look at the holes when she spot another shiny metal piece.

" _Look there is another one in there!_ " Yova said digging a little. " _It's smaller but it's like yours only it looks like the leaves on the trees_."

" _I don't think it goes around the neck, it's too small_."

" _No but it works just fine like this_." Yova said holding out a triumphant arm.

" _Great but we really have to go now so grab your things_."

Youki pick up a few more things and run toward the watchtower.  
Yova sigh and go join her sister while the dog follow her closely.

 

* * *

 

The twins are almost home when Yova stop briefly and turn to Youki.

" _I think we have enough time to do one more thing before we go home_." Yova said grinning.

" _We're already supposed to be home. We don't have time to do anything else_."

" _We're going to explore Heda's home_." Yova said ignoring her sister's comment.

" _What? No, mom and dad said we had to follow the rules now_."

" _Stop being such a wuss. Come on, it's gonna be fun._ " Yova said grabbing Youki's hand and walked toward Lexa's hut.

They reach the hut moments later and after passing by the two guards at the front door, they silently climb the window on the left side of the hut.  
They find themselves in the Commander's bedroom and they can hear people talking from somewhere inside.

" _Woah!_ " Yova whispered. " _It looks so great now_."

" _She must be really important because this hut way too big for just one person_."

" _She is important, she's the commander of the thirteen clans. I heard dad talking about it with mom_."

" _You don't even know what a clan is_." Youki sneered.

" _And you do?_ "

" _No but we know she's a commander. What does a commander do?_ "

" _She give orders to people?_ "

" _To a lot of people surely_."

" _I don't understand why we have to listen to her though_." Yova said frowning.

" _I don't know but I heard mom and dad one night saying they had no choice_."

" _Well I don't care, we're breaking the rules right now. We're not supposed to be here_."

" _We might as well make it worth it while we're here right?_ " Youki murmured as she started looking around. " _Okay, I want to see her clothes_."

" _And I want to see her weapons. I bet they're gonna be all shiny_." Yova said looking under the bed.

" _She's the Commander, she should look pretty_." Youki said opening a trunk. " _Ew that is not pretty_." she said holding a sleeveless dark vest in her hands.

" _It looks tough, I think it's armor. You know, like mom's shield but with clothes_."

" _Hmm well it's not pretty. When I'm a grown up, I want to look tough and pretty_." Youki said putting the vest back in the trunk.

" _Oh I found one!_ " Yova said grabbing a large sword. " _Look there is gold on the handle!_ "

Youki let out a small gasp when she hear something approaching. Yova quickly put the sword back and turn to see Bluma coming through the door.

" _Crap! I told you he would follow us!_ "

" _No you didn't and besides, how was I supposed to know he wou_ -" Yova started but stopped when she saw the Commander at the door.

" _What are you both doing here?_ " Lexa asked seriously.

" _Nothing_." The twins said un unison looking at their feet.

" _I see_." Lexa said. " _I suppose you will have no problem if I bring you both home then? After you_." she said stepping aside.

The twins look at each other for a second and silently agree to both keep their mouth shut and walk together out of the Commander's hut.  
They walk purposefully slower than usual and by the time they reach their home, Clarke is already outside waiting for them.  
The look on their mom's face says it all, they're late. But when she see Lexa behind them, the look on her face shift and they know what's about happen.

" _What did you do?!_ " Clarke asked giving them a suspicious look.

The twins stay silent looking at the floor.

" _They wer_ -" Lexa said before being cut.

" _No, I want them to tell me. I want to hear them both_."

" _We were in Heda's bedroom_..." Youki began.

" _We were only looking_." Yova finished with an unconvincing tone.

" _Oh I'm sure you did_." Clarke said as she reached for Youki's necklace. Youki raise her head briefly and noticed the Commander's eyes widened.

" _We didn't take anything. We found these at the lake_." Yova said showing the bracelet to her mom.

" _The lake? Again?!_ " Clarke asked raising her voice. " _Do you even listen to your dad and I when we're talking to you?_ "

The twins yet again remained silent.

" _We will talk tonight after your father get back. I will also find something for you to do since you obviously have too much free time on your hands. Now get inside, I have to talk with the Commander_."

They quickly get inside but while Youki went to her room, Yova stay at the door to listen to the conversation.

"I hope they didn't make a mess." Clarke said sofly.

"I don't think so."

"Sorry about this, they've been a little reckless since the village has been finished. Do I have to worry about consequences?"

"They were just snooping around and they didn't steal anything so no, there is nothing to worry about. Just make sure they don't break into other people's homes anymore."

"Oh with what I have planned for them, I don't think it will happen again."

"Remember they still have their training with me, don't be too harsh on them."

"How are they doing so far?"

"They are talented with a bow. Youki still need to get properly acquainted with the knives but they both have everything to learn when it comes to swords and spears."

"What about the shields, will you teach them how to use it too?"

"In order to do that, I would need to know how to use one myself."

"I could teach you." Clarke said nonchalantly.

"You made it clear that you didn't want to spend time around me. Why would you do that then?"

"If you're going to train my daughters, you might as well teach them everything there is to know."

"When do we start?"

"Everyday after noon."

"Very well, I will see you tomorrow. Good day Clarke."

"Good day." Clarke said softly. " _Bluma stay_."

Yova hear her mom coming back and quickly go to her room.

~~  ~~  ~~

Lydia  
Idon

~~  ~~  ~~

Lydia is in the armory putting back her swords when she hear the sound of a horn.  
She leave quickly to see what's going on. Outside, she can see a few people gathered at the edge of the village.  
Vik and the others warriors are back and they're heading straight to the Commander's hut.

Seeing that she won't be able to speak with him at the moment, Lydia leave for the communal hut to eat something.  
As she get close, she hear some shouting coming from the tek hut.

"Is there anything wrong?" Lydia said as she get inside.

"Hey Lydia. There is nothing wrong, I just couldn't get the last pieces of the radio to work so I switched to something different before I did something I would regret." Raven said with a deep sigh.

"So what are you doing now?"

"I was going to work on the traps for the bears but that was almost done so I'm working on something to get rid of the snake instead."

"Do you need help?"

"Maybe." Raven said grinning. "Do you wanna be my target?"

Lydia open her mouth a brief moment but decide it's best to say nothing.

"Relax, I'm just fucking with you." Raven said laughing. "Come on, help me carry all that crap on the hill."

"What is all this?" she asked carrying a heavy piece of metal.

"Well that big thing you just grabbed is called a cannon." Raven said as she took a long metal stick that looked like a spear. "And this is a harpoon. Now if it works like I hope it will, then it should be enough to kill that damn snake."

"You're going to kill it with this?" she asked in a disbelieving tone.

"Not just this, I'm going to build four of them if we can get this one to actually work. Trust me, it may not look like it but that thing is going to rock it damn good. Let's go."

Raven and Lydia leave the hut with their arms full and reach the hill a few moments later.  
They drop all the stuff on the ground.

"Alright, get down the hill and set up the dummy while I take care of all that stuff." Raven told her. "I'll try not to shoot you."

Lydia narrow her eyes and then smile as she moved down the hill. By the time she come back, Raven is almost done readying the harpoon.

"Here, give me a hand." Raven said offering her a hammer. "Need you to nail it because that shit is going to pack some serious punch."

"Nail it?" Lydia asked confused.

"We need to make sure the cannon is stable because it will move every time we use it."

Lydia nod and start putting the large metal sticks into the ground.

"Now let's get to the fun part." Raven said with a big smile.

Raven push a button and the cannon make a strange noise but the harpoon barely move.

"Well that was disappointing." Raven said as she take a tool from her belt and bring it to the side of the cannon. "There, it should be better now."

She put the harpoon back in place and push the button again. The harpoon fly a few feet away from the cannon.

"Oh come on!" Raven groaned as she repeat the process. "Now if that's not enough then you'd better get ready to go swimming."

She push the button once more and the cannon make a deafening noise. Lydia startle and look at Raven who put her fist in the air in triumph.

"Yes! That's what I'm talking about." she said as she started to move down the hill.

Lydia follow her and as they reach the spot where the harpoon landed, they can see it's half buried into the ground.

"Dummy missed but the test was a resounding success."

"Yeah, I think the whole village must have heard it too."

"Don't worry, they'll soon be happy to hear it." Raven said looking pensive. "I'm going to attach wires to some of the harpoons so we can haul it back before we kill it."

"Hum, you know it's a big lake right?"

"We'll need to get some long wires but I'm pretty sure we can find that in some of the big cities."

"Well now that we know it works, shall we bring all of this back?" Lydia asked.

"I have everything I needed and I think the harpoons should be enough to take care of the snake so the only thing left to do is to announce it to the Commander."

Raven and Lydia spend a few moments packing up all the stuff and they spend a while trying to remove the harpoon stuck into the ground.  
After too many attempts, they both agree to go back to the village and ask someone to remove it later.  
On their way to the tek hut, Lydia notice a man coming toward them.

"Lydia, Heda want to speak with you." the warrior said as he stopped in front of her.

Lydia nod and the man quickly turned to go back to where he came from.

"Don't worry, I won't let you bring all of this back by yourself." Lydia said smiling as she notice the frown on Raven's face.

"How generous of you." Raven said humorlessly.

They both reach the hut a minute later. Lydia say goodbye to Raven and make her way to the Commander's hut.

 

* * *

 

Lydia go past the two guard posted at the door of the Commander's hut and get inside.  
She take a few steps and stop in the middle of the room.

" _Heda_." she said bowing.

" _Hello Lydia, I have a task for you if you are ready to make the road back to Polis once again_."

" _Of course Heda_."

" _In that case, I need you to go to Polis and meet with Titus. You are going to tell him to begin the construction of the road from Kans to Idon as well as two outposts. One of them will be built halfway through Kans and the old world city while the other will be built inside the city_."

"It will be done _Heda_."

" _You can choose to remain at Polis or join the construction team and come back here when they begin the construction of the second outpost_."

" _I will be coming back here_."

" _Very well, you will leave tomorrow morning then. You may leave_."

" _Yes heda_." she said bowing again.

Lydia turn back and leave the hut.  
She move toward the communal hut to prepare what she will need for the journey.

As she reach the hut, she see Vik and Raven talking together.

"Hello Lydia." Vik said.

"Hello Vik. I saw you coming back earlier, I wanted to ask how it went but you all went to see the Commander so..."

"Yes, we had been ordered to report as soon as we got back. Everything went well, there was no incidents and we have found a path to lead the bears to."

"And I just told him about the traps I made so it will make things easier for them." Raven said.

"I'm glad they can get extra help because I won't be helping you with that. I'm leaving for Polis tomorrow."

"Already? We just got here, like three days ago." Raven said.

"Well you stay here with us a moment then, I would like you to give a message to someone when you will pass through Kans." Vik said.

"It would be my pleasure."

They spend some time talking and before they know it, it's dark and they all agree to part ways. Lydia get back to one of the long huts to get some sleep.  
Tomorrow, she will begin yet another journey to Polis.


End file.
